MAJOR MAESTRO: Justin Timberlake

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Xposition - February, 2018

Attention!!!

Although the Grammys are over, we are not done with the awards season, as we have UK’s biggest music night to celebrate with Dua Lipa and Stormzy emerging as the top winners at the 2018 BRIT Awards. Lipa took home British Breakthrough and British Female while Stormzy took home the British Male and the coveted Album of the Year for Gang Signs and Prayer. The night’s memorable performances included Dua Lipa with her summer smash New Rules, Ed Sheeran with Supermarker Flowers, Rita Ora with a medley of Your Song, Anywhere and For You accompanied by Liam Payne and a surprise performance by Liam Gallagher with Oasis hit Live Forever. Other recipients include:

· British Group: Gorillaz

· British Producer of the Year: Steve Mac

· British Single: Rag ‘n’ Bone Man – Human

· British Artist Video of the Year: Harry Styles – Sign of the Times

· International Male Solo Artist: Kendrick Lamar

· International Female Solo Artist: Lorde

· International Group: Foo Fighters

· BRITs Global Success Award: Ed Sheeran

In other music news, Justin Timberlake performed at the Pepsi Super Bowl LII Halftime Show. With mixed to negative reviews, Timberlake had big shoes to fill as Lady Gaga put on quite a legendary performance the year before. Introduced by none other than Jimmy Fallon, Timberlake performed a medley of songs including his newest single at the time Filthy and his former hits Rock Your Body, Senorita, SexyBack, My Love, Cry Me A River and Until The End of Time. He then gave tribute to Prince in his Minneapolis-native Prince with the latter’s hit I Would Die 4 U and proceeded to close the set with Mirrors and Can’t Stop The Feeling!

Meanwhile, IFPI has released the world’s top 10 bestselling music acts of 2017 and none other than Ed Sheeran the sole Brit on the list takes the crown. It’s a no-brainer that he would top the list after whopping album sales for his latest studio album ÷ and the global smash hit Shape of You which topped almost all the charts worldwide. The acts compose of 7 Americans and 2 Canadians. The 10 acts are:

1. Ed Sheeran

2. Drake

3. Taylor Swift

4. Kendrick Lamar

5. Eminem

6. Bruno Mars

7. The Weeknd

8. Imagine Dragons

9. Linkin Park

10. The Chainsmokers

In the US, Drake’s God Plan debuted atop the Billboard Hot 100 from the first week ending Camila Cabello featuring Young Thug’s Havana short stint at the top during the last week of January. God’s Plan remained at the pole position throughout the month. During the month Bebe Rexha featuring Flo Rida Georgia Line’s Meant To Be, Justin Timberlake featuring Chris Stapleton’s Say Something as well as the theme songs from the Black Panther: Kendrick Lamar and The Weeknd’s Pray For Me and Kendrick Lamar and SZA’s All The Stars all entered the top 10.

In the UK too, Drake debuted atop the charts with God’s Plan ending Eminem featuring Ed Sheeran’s River one week No.1. During the month Dua Lipa’s IDGAF, Jax Jones ft. Ina Wroldsen’s Breathe, Sigrid’s Strangers and the theme song from The Greatest Showman, Keala Settle’s This is Me all entered the top 10.

Other songs which became popular during the month were:

1. Rudimental ft. Macklemore, Jess Glynne and Dan Caplen – These days

2. Marshmello & Anne Marie – Friends

3. Drake – Diplomatic immunity

4. G-Eazy ft. Charlie Puth – Sober

5. Migos – Stir fry

6. BlocBoy JB ft. Drake – Look alive

7. Paloma Faith – Till I’m done

Till the next beat...

At Ease!!!

Xposition - October, 2017

Attention!!!

The month of October commenced with a tragedy where 58 people were shot dead and around 546 injured in a shooting at the Route 91 Harvest Country Music Festival. The shooting took place when headliner Jason Aldean was performing and the death toll makes this the largest mass shooting in US history passing the 49 killed in the 2016 Pulse nightclub shooting in Orlando. The perpetrator Stephen Paddock was a former auditor and real estate businessman who was gunned down during the shooting.

In more tragic news, US musician Tom Petty passed away at the age of 66. He was found in full cardiac arrest at his Malibu home, but could not be revived at the hospital. Petty was the lead singer of Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers and was also a co-founder of the Traveling Wilburys in the late 1980s.

The BET Hip Hop Awards 2017 took place in October where Kendrick Lamar, DJ Khaled and Cardi B were all leading the nomination with 9 nods each. However, the show’s most memorable moment was when Eminem dissed President Donald Trump in a freestyle rap calling out the leader for focusing on the NFL players’ protest during the national anthem instead of Puerto Rico’s recovery efforts in the wake of Hurricane Maria. The big wins of the night include:

· Best Hip Hop Video: Kendrick Lamar – Humble.

· Best Collab: DJ Khaled ft. Rihanna & Bryson Tiller – Wild thoughts

· Lyricist of the Year: Kendrick Lamar

· DJ of the Year: DJ Khaled

· Single of the Year: J. White Did It – Bodak Yellow (Cardi B)

· Album of the Year: Kendrick Lamar – Damn.

· Best New Hip Hop Artist: Cardi B

· Impact Track: Jay-Z – The story of O.J.

The BBC Radio 1 Teen Awards 2017 winners were also held in October with brilliant performances by Dua Lipa, James Arthur, Liam Payne, Rita Ora and Camila Cabello. Dua Lipa took the coveted Best British Single for New Rules while Ed Sheeran was honoured as the Best British Solo Artist. Among the other winners were:

· Most Entertaining Celeb: Stormzy

· Best International Group: The Chainsmokers

· Best British Group: Little Mix

· Best International Solo Artist: Ariana Grande

The big winners of the night at the 2017 Latin American Music Awards were Enrique Iglesias, Prince Royce and new boy band CNCO. There were incredible performances by Camila Cabello with her new hit Havana and Pitbull and Fifth Harmony took to the stage to perform their new collab Por Favor. Pitbull was honoured with the first ever Dick Clark Achievement Award for his contribution to the Latin music industry. Other winners of the night were:

· Artist of the Year: Enrique Iglesias

· Song of the Year: Prince Royce & Shakira – Déjà vu

· Album of the Year: CNCO – Primera Cita

· Favorite Collaboration: Enrique Iglesias ft. Descemer Bueno, Zion & Lennox – Súbeme La Radio

· Favorite Artist-Urban: J Balvin

· Favorite Song-Pop/Rock: CNCO – Reggaeton Lento (Bailemos)

· Favorite Crossover Artist: Selena Gomez

Taylor Swift leads the nominations for the 2017 MTV Europe Music Awards with six nods followed by Kendrick Lamar, Ed Sheeran and Shawn Mendes. Rita Ora is to host the event this year and will be performing one or more of her latest hits. Swift who scored her first No.1 in the UK with Look What You Made Me Do is up for Best US Act, Best Artist, Best Look, Best Pop, Biggest Fans and Best Video.

Nominations for the 45^th annual American Music Awards were also released with Bruno Mars leading the nominations with 8 followed by Drake, Ed Sheeran, Kendrick Lamar and the Weeknd. Diana Ross former lead singer of The Supremes and Motown legacy with a monumental solo career after her girl band days will be bestowed with the Lifetime Achievement Award at the end of the ceremony.

It was confirmed by Justin Timberlake on his Twitter account that he will in fact be headlining the Super Bowl LII halftime show in 2018. JT will literally have big boots to fill after the critically acclaimed powerful performance of Lady Gaga at the 2017 halftime show. However, this is not the first time JT will be at the Super Bowl as he was the culprit of the infamous Nipplegate. This was when during his stint with Janet Jackson in 2004 (who headlined the show), JT accidentally ripped Janet’s outfit to expose her breast.

In the US, Cardi B opened the month at the top with her debut hit Bodak Yellow (Money Moves) which removed Taylor Swift’s Look What You Made Do from the helm. It continued its reign for 2 more weeks before being replaced by Post Malone ft. 21 Savage’s Rockstar. During the month Demi Lovato’s Sorry Not Sorry entered the top which became her highest charting single in the US peaking at No.6 and she was joined in the top 10 by Portugal. The Man’s Feel It Still, Imagine Dragons’ Thunder and J Balvin & Willy William ft. Beyonce’s Mi Gente.

In the UK, Sam Smith’s Too Good at Goodbye’s continued its reign into the first week of October after which Post Malone dethroned Smith with his global hit Rockstar which remained at the top for the rest of the month. During the month Logic ft. Alessa Cara & Khalid’s 1-800-273-8255, Mabel ft. Kojo Funds’ Finders Keepers, Marshmello ft. Khaild’s Silence and Stefflon Don ft. French Montana’s Hurtin’ Me all entered the top 10.

Other songs which became popular during the month were:

1. Rita Ora – Anywhere

2. Charlie Puth – How long

3. Liam Payne – Bedroom floor

4. Louis Tomlinson – Just like you

5. Taylor Swift – Gorgeous

6. Maroon 5 ft. ASAP Rocky – Whiskey

7. RedOne ft. French Montana, Daddy Yankee & Dinah Jane – Boom boom

Till the next beat...

At Ease!!!

Most Inspirational Songs of 2016

Attention!!!

This segment of the year-end compilation is here to stay. This is mostly because unlike other decades, each year there are enough and more inspirational songs that are released. Even most movies and animated films include many inspirational songs, which is clearly reflected on this list. While inspirational songs did not chart high worldwide in 2016 like the preceding year, there were some really good songs. Particularly Andra Day's Rise Up is an exceptional song which has now been covered by hundreds of artists. It is also a favorite at auditions in reality contests. At second place is Sia with her Never Give Up from the film Lion and at third is Sucker for Pain by Lil Wayne and a number of artists from the film Suicide Squad.

Sia is the only artist with two entries while Fergie has two entries as she is also a part of the Black Eyed Peas. The film Trolls also has two songs on the list. Other films include Zootopia, Alice Through the Looking Glass, and Star Trek Beyond. Some other interesting facts are that Fifth Harmony's last single as a quintet is on the list as well as the Black Eyed Peas' final song before Fergie's departure; the official song for the UEFA Euro 2016 by David Guetta and the official English song for the Olympics 2016 by Katy Perry are also on the list. So here are the top 25 most inspirational songs of 2016:

Andra Day – Rise up
Sia – Never give up
Lil Wayne, Wiz Khalifa & Imagine Dragons ft. Logic, Ty Dolla $ign & X Ambassadors – Sucker for pain
Katy Perry – Rise
Shakira – Try everything
Rihanna – Sledgehammer
Charlie Puth – One call away
Justin Timberlake – Can’t stop the feeling!
G-Eazy & Bebe Rexha – Me, myself & I
Selena Gomez – Kill ‘em with kindness
Iggy Azalea – Team
Alan Walker – Alone
Fifth Harmony – That’s my girl
Pink – Just like fire
David Guetta ft. Zara Larsson – This one’s for you
Tim McGraw – Humble and kind
Sia ft. Kendrick Lamar – The greatest
Major Lazer ft. Justin Bieber & MØ – Cold water
Anna Kendrick – Get back up again
Fergie – Life goes on
Zedd ft. Kesha – True colors
Dami Im – Fighting for love
Black Eyed Peas ft. The World – #WHEREISTHELOVE
Robbie Williams – Love my life
Beyonce – Formation

Till the next chord...

At Ease!!!

Greatest Hits of 2016

Attention!!!

2016 belonged to EDM, Dancehall and Reggae Fusion. Justin Bieber began the year at the top of the global charts, but it’s Drake whose mammoth collaboration One Dance with WizKid and Kyla that takes the crown this year as chart performance in most of Europe have already been tallied for Bieber’s Love Yourself for 2015. The smash hit collaboration which brought Dancehall into the mainstream also paved the way for veteran Sean Paul to emerge from the depths of the forgotten 2000s to reignite Reggae Fusion which he succeeded with collaborations with Sia on Cheap Thrills and Clean Bandit on Rockabye.

It was an awesome year for most genres. EDM evolved to a stage where Synthpop and Dancehall was incorporated to form a much mellowed tone than that which the previous years produced such as Progressive House. R&B did not entirely disappear from the mainstream as Rihanna’s newest album Anti produced her global hit Work another collaboration with Drake. Alternative Rock music also entered the mainstream once again in the form of Twenty One Pilots whose album Blurry Face is quite reminiscent of the bygone era of Linkin Park. Pop music took on a more tropical feel to keep up with the increasing popularity of Dancehall and Reggae.

Social media and viral music proved once again to play a massive part in contributing to the mainstream charts. Young stars such as Alessia Cara and Troye Sivan amassed quite a following throughout the year as their hits managed to fare better with social media fame. Viral hits such as Zay Hilfigerrr and Zayion McCall’s Juju On That Beat and Rae Sremmurd ft. Gucci Mane’s Black Beatles surged to the top of the charts, the former with its unique dance moves and the latter fueled by the extremely popular Mannequin Challenge which was the next best thing after Donald Trump Memes in the last quarter of the year.

Soundtracks continued to be successful similar to 2015 where Justin Timberlake’s Can’t Stop The Feeling! from Trolls and almost the entire soundtrack of Suicide Squad particularly Twenty One Pilots’ Heathens faring extremely well on the global charts. We bade adieu to One Direction as the group went on a hiatus in early 2016 and Camila Cabello left Fifth Harmony just two weeks ago which may lead to the end of the girl group which only just received a proper mainstream following.

Justin Bieber has the highest number of entries with 4 followed by The Chainsmokers, Drake and Rihanna with 3 each and Zara Larsson, Twenty One Pilots, Sean Paul, Shawn Mendes, Ariana Grande, Adele and Selena Gomez all having two each on the list. So here are the best 50 songs of 2016 was compiled based on worldwide charts, sales and accolades received:

Drake ft. WizKid & Kyla – One dance
Justin Bieber – Love yourself
Sia ft. Sean Paul – Cheap thrills
The Chainsmokers ft. Halsey – Closer
Justin Timberlake – Can’t stop the feeling!
Rihanna ft. Drake – Work
Major Lazer ft. Justin Bieber & MØ – Cold water
Twenty One Pilots – Stressed out
Calvin Harris ft. Rihanna – This is what you came for
Mike Posner – I took a pill in Ibiza (SeeB Remix)
Lukas Graham – 7 Years
The Chainsmokers ft. Daya – Don’t let me down
Alan Walker – Faded
Zayn – Pillowtalk
DJ Snake ft. Justin Bieber – Let me love you
Shawn Mendes – Stitches
Twenty One Pilots – Heathens
DNCE – Cake by the ocean
Zara Larsson – Lush life
Adele – Hello
Clean Bandit ft. Anne Marie & Sean Paul – Rockabye
Fifth Harmony ft. Ty Dolla $ign – Work from home
Kungs vs. Cookin’ On 3 Burners – This girl
Rae Sremmurd ft. Gucci Mane – Black Beatles
James Arthur – Say you won’t let go
G-Eazy & Bebe Rexha – Me, myself & I
Pink – Just like fire
The Weeknd ft. Daft Punk – Starboy
Ariana Grande ft. Nicki Minaj – Side to side
Jonas Blue ft. Dakota – Fast car
Justin Bieber – Sorry
Desiigner – Panda
Gnash ft. Olivia O’ Brien – I hate u, I love u
Drake ft. Rihanna – Too good
The Chainsmokers ft. ROZES – Roses
Zara Larsson & MNEK – Never forget you
Meghan Trainor – No
Flo Rida – My house
Little Mix – Shout out to my ex
Shawn Mendes – Treat you better
Bruno Mars – 24K Magic
Coldplay – Hymn for the weekend
Enrique Iglesias ft. Wisin – Duele el Corazón
Adele – Send my love (to your new lover)
Charlie Puth ft. Selena Gomez – We don’t talk anymore
Hailee Steinfeld & Grey ft. Zedd – Starving
Selena Gomez – Hands to myself
Ariana Grande – Dangerous woman
Alessia Cara – Here
Maroon 5 ft. Kendrick Lamar – Don’t wanna know

Till the next beat...

At Ease!!!

Xposition - September, 2016

Attention!!!

September started off with a surprise gift from the Black Eyed Peas as they released a new version of Where is the love? stylized as #WHEREISTHELOVE featuring The World. Although it is exciting to see the quartet back together, it is not in any way leading to another album. The new release features additional vocals from Justin Timberlake, Jamie Foxx, Ty Dolla $ign, Mary J. Blige, Diddy, Cassie, Andra Day, The Game, Tori Kelly, V. Bozeman, Jessie J, French Montana, DJ Khaled, Usher, Nicole Scherzinger, ASAP Rocky, Jaden Smith and a 40-member children's choir. All proceeds from the song will go to will.i.am's non-profit foundation, i.am.angel., a which charity funds educational programs and college scholarships.

As summer draws to a close the UK and the US have released their songs of the summer lists, as the figures of streaming, sales and airplay are finalized. Drake ft. WizKid & Kyla’s One Dance takes the top spot in both countries as it flooded the dancefloors, radios and clubs throughout the summer worldwide. The top ten in the UK are as follows:

Drake ft. WizKid & Kyla – One Dance
Kungs vs. Cookin’ On 3 Burners – This girl
Calvin Harris ft. Rihanna – This is what you came for
Drake ft. Rihanna – Too good
Calum Scott – Dancing on my own
Justin Timberlake – Can’t stop the feeling!
The Chainsmokers ft. Halsey – Don’t let me down
Major Lazer ft. Justin Bieber & MØ – Cold water
Clean Bandit ft. Louisa Johnson – Tears
Jonas Blue ft. JP Cooper – Perfect strangers

Leading the annual Song of the Summer chart in the US from start to finish, Drake grabbed the coveted crown after staying at the top for all 14 weeks. It’s the third song this decade to rule from start to finish, following Iggy Azalea ft. Charli XCX’s Fancy and Katy Perry ft. Snoop Dogg’s California Gurls. The top ten in the US are as follows:

Drake ft. WizKid & Kyla – One Dance
Justin Timberlake – Can’t stop the feeling!
The Chainsmokers ft. Halsey – Don’t let me down
Sia ft. Sean Paul – Cheap thrills
Calvin Harris ft. Rihanna – This is what you came for
Desiigner – Panda
Rihanna – Needed me
Twenty One Pilots – Ride
Fifth Harmony ft. Ty Dolla $ign – Work from home
Adele – Send my love (to your new lover)

On 7th September 2016 the music video of Wiz Khalifa ft. Charlie Puth’s See You Again entered the exclusive 2 billion views club which logically means that more than a quarter of the world’s population has watched it. Taken from the Furious 7 soundtrack it was dedicated as a tribute to Paul Walker who died in a tragic car accident months before the completion of the movie. This video follows K-Pop viral sensation Gangnam Style by PSY which first hit the 2 billion mark back in 2014.

Moving on to reality TV news, after a drought of four years, a singer has won America’s Got Talent. Twelve year-old singer, songwriter and ukuleleist Grace VanderWaal won the 11th season of AGT beating psychic duo The Clairvoyants and magician Jon Dorenbos. She is the second female and the second child act to win in the show’s history.

The Latin Grammys 2016 nominations are in and leading the way with four nods each are Colombian star Fonseca nominated for two albums: Conexion up for Album of the Year and Homanje (A La Musica De Diomedes Diaz) up for Best Cumbia/Vallenato Album along with Mexican duo Jesse & Joy, Brazilian singer/songwriter Djavan, sound engineer Ricardo Lopez Lalinde and producer/engineer Julio Reyes Copello (the last two for their work with Fonseca, Andres Cepeda and Diego Torres). Marc Anthony has been named the 2016 Latin Recording Academy Person of the Year who will be honoured during Latin Grammy week on November 16, the night before the awards ceremony in Las Vegas.

Selena Gomez has been accumulating her fan base on a monumental scale as she becomes the first person to reach 100 million Instagram followers. Meanwhile, Lady Gaga released her latest single Perfect Illusion accompanied by a less than mediocre video, as the lead single off her highly anticipated upcoming fifth studio album Joanne. The Weeknd who’s last album Beauty Behind The Madness, which has been certified multi-platinum worldwide, announced that his next album will be called Starboy.

Omarion and DJ Mustard have been sued by BMG Rights Management for intellectual property rights infringement for a whopping USD 300,000. Back in 2014, Jon Redwine penned a song called Came To Do for Chris Brown and assigned 50% of the rights to BMG which was produced by Nic Nac. BMG alleges that Omarion’s most successful hit to date Post To Be, a collaboration with Chris Brown and Jheine Aiko is a sampling of the music from Came To Do. The lawsuit is not only seeking damages but BMG is also seeking an injunction to prevent Omarion from performing the song and preventing any sales and/or airplay.

Moving on to chart news, in the US, the reign of Sia ft. Sean Paul’s Cheap Thrills came to an end as The Chainsmokers ft. Halsey’s Closer took over and remained at the top for the rest of the month. The Chainsmokers succeed on their fourth attempt to reach the top after #Selfie in 2013 and Roses in 2015 and Don’t Let Me Down in 2016. Meanwhile, they are the first duo to reach the top since Macklemore & Ryan Lewis in 2013 and also the first EDM song to top the chart since Baauer’s Harlem Shake in 2013. During the month Twenty One Pilots’ Heathens rose to a peak of No.2 and Ride ascended to No.5. Moreover, Shawn Mendes’ Treat You Better and Charlie Puth ft. Selena Gomez’s We Don’t Talk Anymore entered the top 10. In addition Drake’s One Dance ended its monumental run at the top and inside the top 10 as it exited the top 10 during the month, ending Drake’s streak of 51 consecutive weeks in the Top 10. With this feat Drake becomes the best streak ever by a male artist to remain within the top 10, second among all acts only to Katy Perry’s 69-week run in 2010-2011.

In the UK, Major Lazer ft. Justin Bieber & MØ’s Cold Water continued its stay at the top extending its reign to five weeks but The Chainsmoker’s Closer grabbed the top spot in the UK as well and remained there for the rest of the month. During the month Martin Garrix ft. Bebe Rexha’s In The Name Of Love, Sia ft. Kendrick Lamar’s The Greatest, Ariana Grande ft. Nicki Minaj’s Side To Side and James Arthur’s Say You Won’t Let Go all entered the top 10.

Other songs which became popular during the month were:

Calvin Harris – My way
Zara Larsson – Ain’t my fault
Dua Lipa – Blow your mind (mwah)
D.R.A.M. ft. Lil Yachty – Broccoli
Hailee Steinfeld ft. Grey & Zedd – Starving

Till the next beat...

At Ease!!!

Xposition - July, 2016

Attention!!!

The summer is in full swing and the awards dry spell continues with only the 2016 Teen Choice Awards being held in July hosted by Victoria Justice and John Cena. While the awards focus on all aspects of entertainment such as music, television, film and sports, we'll stick to the music side of things and also some interesting accolades which artists received at the show. Flo Rida opened the show with a medley of My House, Good Feeling and Wild Ones (with Bebe Rexha) and then went on to perform his newest single Zillionaire. Charlie Puth performed his newest hit We Don't Talk Anymore as a solo version. Justin Bieber received the most nominations with 11 while Justin Timberlake received the inaugural Decade Award. So the major wins of the night included:

Male Artist - Justin Bieber
Female Artist - Selena Gomez
Group - One Direction
Female Single: Ariana Grande - Dangerous woman
Male Single: Justin Bieber - Sorry
International Artist - Little Mix
Summer Song: Fifth Harmony ft. Ty Dolla $ign - Work from home
Party Song: DNCE - Cake by the ocean
Breakout Artist - Zayn Malik

Meanwhile, Christina Grimmie who was tragically shot dead by a fan recently was posthumously bestowed with the Choice Music Web Star but family and fans were in uproar as they expressed their disappointment as Grimmie was not mentioned by Jessica Alba and Ne-Yo during the #StoptheViolence tribute for family members of teens who had died due to violence.

The Official Albums Chart of the UK celebrated its 60th anniversary in July with the first ever chart published on 22nd July 1956 which saw Frank Sinatra's Songs for Swingin' Lovers grab the coveted crown. To mark the historic milestone of the chart the Official Charts Company has released the UK's 60 Biggest Selling Albums of All Time. Queen's Greatest Hits is at No.1 followed by ABBA's Gold Greatest Hits at No.2 The top 10 are:

Queen - Greatest Hits (1981)
ABBA - Gold - Greatest Hits
The Beatles - Sgt Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band (1967)
Adele - 21 (2011)
Oasis - What's the Story Morning Glory (1995)
Michael Jackson - Thriller (1982)
Pink Floyd - The Dark Side of the Moon (1973)
Dire Straits - Brothers in Arms (1985)
Michael Jackson - Bad (1987)
Queen - Greatest Hits II (1991)

The month witnessed the launch of the Global Goal's Campaign's #WhatIReallyReallyWant movement which used the Spice Girl's global smash hit Wannabe in its campaign. The girl-power wielding hit was used in the video which stars an array of international artists including Sri Lankan Bollywood actress Jacqueline Fernandez, Nigeria's Seyi Shay, South Africa's Gigi Lamayne and Monoea, the United States' Larsen Thompson, the U.K.'s M.O. and Canada's Taylor Hatala. The song is used to shed light on issues affecting young women around the globe such as violence against girls, lack of quality education and child marriage.

More news on the Spice Girls as they celebrate their 20th anniversary of Wannabe. Geri Horner (Halliwell), Emma Bunton and Melanie Brown are to reunite as GEM as Victoria Beckam and Melanie Chrishom have backed out of the reunion. Scary, Baby and Ginger have got together to celebrate this hallmark occasion by staging a show in London's Hyde Park next summer, which insiders now claim the singing trio will pocket $14 million each from the gig - that's over $100,000 (£74,000)-a-minute per person.

We're still not done with 90s news as MTV plans to rebrand VH1 Classic as MTV Classic with a special focus on fan-favorite programmes and series drawn from the 1990s and early 2000s. The switch coming into effect on August 1 commemorates MTV's launch 35 years ago on August 1, 1981.

Katy Perry released a surprise single titled Rise which serves as the official English anthem of the Rio Olympics 2016. This is her first single since 2014's This Is How You Do and she performed it for the first time as a part of a medley with her hit single Roar at the 2016 Democratic National Convention, where she endorsed Hilary Clinton for US President.

The Dutchess is back but this time with a dairy flavour as Fergie released her newest single M.I.L.F. $ with a star studded cast in the sultry music video which includes Ciara, Kim Kardashian, Chrissy Teigen, Gemma Ward and Amber Valletta. The song serves as the lead single to her second studio album Double Dutchess.

Moving on to chart news, Drake ft. Wizkid and Kyla's titanic hit One Dance reigned throughout the month in the US accumulating a whopping ten non-consecutive week rule. Meanwhile Sia ft. Sean Paul's Cheap Thrills, Kent Jones' Don't Mind, Twenty One Pilots' Ride and Adele's Send My Love (To Your New Lover) all enter the top ten while The Chainsmoker's ft. Daya's Don't Let Me Down reaches a new peak at No.3 and Calvin Harris ft. Rihanna's This Is What You Came For reaches a new peak at No.4 with the rumours that Harris' ex-girlfriend Taylor Swift had a hand at penning the song.

In the UK too Drake reigned supreme with One Dance as he logged his fifteenth week atop the charts during the fourth week of July. This feat places him on level with Wet Wet Wet's Love Is All Around which spent 15 weeks at the top in 1994. The record holder is Bryan Adam's (Everything I Do) I Do It For You which ruled for 16 weeks at the top in 1991. Other songs which entered the top 10 include Calum Scott's Dancing On My Own, Jonas Blue ft. JB Cooper's Perfect Strangers and Shawn Mendes' Treat You Better.

Other songs which became popular during the month are:

Twenty One Pilots - Heathens
Bastille - Good grief
MØ - Final song
Selena Gomez - Kill 'em with kindness
Kiiara - Gold
Lukas Graham - Mama said

Till the next beat...

At Ease!!!

Xposition - May, 2016

Attention!!!

It's that time of the year when all of Europe and selected outsiders come together for the biggest singing competition in the world. Move over, Idol, The Voice and The X Factor, as 2016 Eurovision Song Contest is the biggest yet, with 43 countries battling it out for the trophy. With Russia as the favourite going into the competition even Australia who is now granted the status of a fully fledged contestant has entered one of its strongest competitors. After Sweden took the crown in 2015, it was Stockholm's turn to host the show. With two semi-finals and a final which saw 26 countries vying for the crown.

The ultimate winner of the contest was Ukraine with the song 1944, performed by Jamala. This was Ukraine's second win and its first since 2004. This was the first time since the introduction of professional jury voting in 2009 that the overall winner won neither the jury vote, which was won by Australia's Dami Im with Sound of Silence, nor the televote, which was won by Russia's Sergey Lazarev's You Are The Only One, with Ukraine placing second in both. As soon as the results were announced petition was signed by Change.org to get the organizers of the contest to cancel the results, doubting Jamala's victory. However, the European Broadcasting Union stood firm and affirmed their initial decision.

The 2016 Billboard Music Awards was also held in May hosted by Ludacris and Ciara and The Weeknd leading the nominations with 20. Leading up to the awards there was drama involving Kesha and Dr.Luke who are still embroiled in litigation. Dr.Luke's Kemosabe Records who initially granted approval to Kesha to perform at the awards, thereafter rescinded it which led to a major media backlash and a huge fan uproar. However, this decision was again changed and Kesha was allowed to perform, which led to her first official performance at an awards show since her infamous lawsuit.

The BBMA kicked off with an opening medley by the 2016 Billboard Millennium Award recipient Britney Spears whose medley included iconic hits such as Toxic, Womanizer and Work Bitch. The best performance of the night however was Pink's Just Like Fire which saw her putting on a marvelous acrobatic show. Other awesome performances include DNCE's Cake By The Ocean, Ariana Grande's Dangerous Woman/Into You, Rihanna's Love On The Brain and a tribute to Prince by Madonna and Stevie Wonder. The Weeknd was the big winner of the night grabbing 8 wins including Top Hot 100 Artist, Top Song Sales Artist, Top Radio Songs Artist and Top R&B Artist. Adele won 5 awards including Top Artist, Top Female Artist and Top Billboard 200 Artist. Other winners included:

Top Male Artist: Justin Bieber
Top New Artist: Fetty Wap
Top Duo/Group: One Direction
Top Touring Artist: Taylor Swift
Top Hot 100 Song: Wiz Khalifa ft. Charlie Puth - See You Again
Top Billboard 200 Album; Adele - 25
Top Dance/Electronic Artist: David Guetta
Top Dance/Electronic Song: Major Lazer & DJ Snake ft. MO - Lean On
Top Dance/Electronic Album: Zedd - True Colours
Top R&B Song: The Weeknd - The Hills
Top R&B Album: The Weeknd - Beauty Behind The Madness
Top Rap Artist: Drake
Top Rock Artist: Twenty One Pilots
Top Soundtrack: Pitch Perfect 2
Billboard Icon Award: Celine Dion

Moving on to chart news, in the US Desiigner's Panda finally ended the 9-week reign of Rihanna ft. Drake's Work. After only two weeks at the top Drake ft. Wizkid & Kyla's One Dance grabbed the top spot. One Dance became Drake's first No.1 in the US as a lead artist while he earned the top spot alongside Rihanna with Work and What's My Name earlier and came as close as No.2 with Hotline Bling and Best I Ever Had. The fourth and final week of the month saw Justin Timberlake's Can't Stop The Feeling! from the original soundtrack from the movie Trolls grab the No.1 spot. The charts witnessed a surge in hits by Prince in early May as the superstar's death caused his fans to purchase, stream and request his hits on the radio. As a result When Doves Cry and Purple Rain, his two signature hits re-entered the top 10, both of which had a stint at No.1 back in 1984.

Next up Queen Bey's surprise sixth studio album Lemonade was released after which Beyonce became the first female artist to chart 12 or more songs on the US Billboard Hot 100 at the same time, with every song on the album debuting on the chart. She passed the previously held record of 11 by Taylor Swift's Speak Now album. Formation, the lead single from Lemonade debuted at No.10 on the Hot 100. During the month The Chainsmokers ft. Daya's Don't Let Me Down, Calvin Harris ft. Rihanna's This Is What You Came For and Rihanna's Needed Me all entered the top 10.

Meanwhile in the UK, Drake's One Dance continued its supremacy over the charts being at the helm throughout the month and accumulating six consecutive atop the charts. JT's Can't Stop The Feeling!, Calvin Harris ft. Rihanna's This Is What You Came For, Galantis' No Money, DJ Snake ft. Bipolar Sunshine's Middle and Desiigner's Panda all entered the top 10 during the month.

Other songs which became popular during the month include:

Drake ft. Rihanna - Too good
Fifth Harmony - Write on me
Twenty One Pilots - Ride
Jennifer Lopez - Ain't your mama
Little Mix ft. Sean Paul - Hair
Ruth B - Lost boy
Tim McGraw - Humble and kind

Till the next beat...

At Ease!!!

(All images used in the posts unless otherwise mentioned are drawn from https://images.google.com/ and the author does not hold copyright over the photos used.)

Top Collaborations That Have Found Repeated Success

Attention!!!

These days most artists collaborate with others to produce good music. But what defines a good collaboration is when they achieve repeated success and critical acclaim for the end result. Everyone wants Pitbull, Flo Rida, Rihanna, Lil Wayne or Nicki Minaj to be featured on their tracks as they know it will ultimately lead to a hit single. However, the chemistry of some artists fall short while others thrive. And those who have found this chemistry have collaborated on several hits. So here are the 10 most successful collaborations of today.

1. Eminem & Rihanna

It doesn't take a genius to figure out that this collaboration could only produce something awesome. Beginning with Love The Way You Lie and its sequel, the duo have experienced monumental success. Thereafter, Eminem was featured in Rihanna's Numb and this was followed by 2014's global hit Monster.

2. Jennifer Lopez & Pitbull

They initially collaborated on Fresh Out Of The Oven which was only a promotional single. Then came the worldwide smash hit On The Floor. This was followed by J-Lo's hits Dance Again and Live It Up. Thereafter, the duo collaborated on the 2014 FIFA World Cup Song We Are One (Ole Ola) alongside Claudia Leitte. Their last collaboration was Booty, although J-Lo released the single with Iggy Azalea. More recently, the duo collaborated with Prince Royce on his Back It Up single.

3. David Guetta & Nicki Minaj

Well these two have proven time and time again that they can only come up with hits. Starting with Where Them Girls At, Guetta and Minaj have gone onto produce hits such as Turn Me On and now the global dance hit Hey Mama.

4. Rihanna & Drake

They started off with Rihanna's What's My Name in 2010, which proved to be immensely successful, which Drake followed up with featuring Ri-Ri in his global hit Take Care. After four long years the friends reunited their musical flame in Rihanna's Work and more recently Rihanna was featured on Drake's Too Good.

5. Beyonce & Jay-Z

Their chemistry has throughout the years proved to be extremely good on and off the studio. They started with Jay-Z's 03 Bonnie & Clyde which was followed by Beyonce's entry into the mainstream as a solo artist with Crazy In Love. Then the hits that followed include De Javu, Hollywood and Lift Off and most recently with Beyonce's global hit Drunk In Love and Jay-Z's Part II (On The Run).

6. Enrique Iglesias & Pitbull

We now know what happens when a Spanish singer and a Cuban Rapper collaborate in music. Their first collaboration was Enrique's comeback single I Like It which reminded that Enrique still existed. After achieving huge success from the collaboration Enrique has gone on to feature Pitbull in I Like How It Feels, I'm A Freak and Let Me Be Your Lover. Enrique has been featured on Pitbull's Come N' Go and I Like (The Remix). More recently Pitbull again sought Iglesias' vocals for the addictive Messin' Around.

7. Chris Brown & Lil Wayne

Brown and Wayne have proven time and time again that everyone wants more of their collaborations. Their start was Brown's lesser known hit Gimme That (Remix). Thereafter, Wayne was featured alongside Swizz Beatz in I Can Transform Ya and alongside Busta Rhymes in Look At Me Now and more recently in Loyal alongside Tyga and French Montana. The duo have also been featured by DJ Khaled in Take It To The Head and How Many Times, David Guetta in I Can Only Imagine, Game in Celebration and Nicki Minaj in Only.

8. Timbaland & Justin Timberlake

Nothing can go wrong when a brilliant music producer and an ex-boy band member collaborate. They first sparked off with the hit Give It To Me which also featured Nelly Furtado. JT was also featured in Timbaland's Release and Bounce. Thereafter, 50 Cent featured the duo on Ayo Technology and Madonna featured them on 4 Minutes. Carry Out was the next big hit. More recently the duo was featured by FreeSol on Fascinated.

9. Jay-Z & Kanye West

It appears that Kanye West gets up on stage to interrupt people at award ceremonies not because he is in love with Beyonce, but her husband, Jay-Z. There are numerous collaborations by the duo. Kanye West was first featured in Swagga Like Us and then Run This Town. Then Jay-Z was featured in the ensemble collaboration Monster. Next the duo released a collaborative album Watch The Throne which spawned the hit singles H.A.M, Otis, Lift Off featuring Beyonce, and Niggas in Paris. More recently the duo reunited for Mercy and Clique.

10. The Cataracs & Dev

As music producers The Cataracs have proven to be extremely successful and when you blend in a female singer/rapper to the mix, it can only get better. The Far East Movement collaborated with The Cataracs and Dev on the unexpected global hit Like a G6 which sparked off this new found successful unity. Dev went onto become a successful solo artist and it was The Cataracs that produced her first album The Night The Sun Came Up which included the hit single Bass Down Low which also featured them. She was featured on their singles Top Of The World and Sunrise and together they were featured on New Boyz' Back Seat and Shwayze's Love Letter.

11. Tinie Tempah & Labrinth

Tinie Tempah's debut hit Pass Out was both written and produced by Labrinth and also provided uncredited vocals on the song's hook. Thereafter, the duo officially collaborated on Tempah's Frisky and Labrinth's global hit Earthquake. More recently the two reunited at the studio for Tempah's Lover Not A Fighter.

Honourable Mentions:

12. Timbaland & Nelly Furtado
13. Calvin Harris & Rihanna

14. Nicki Minaj & Lil Wayne

15. Cheryl Cole & will.i.am

16. Timbaland & Keri Hilson

17. Tom Boxer & Morena

Till the next duet…

At Ease!!!

Most Successful Solo Artists Who Were Once Part of a Band/Group

Attention!!!

There are some bands/groups that consist of certain key performers who outshine the rest. And we all know that most of these bands especially the boy/girl bands do not stay together for long as they disband, split up or go their separate ways due to various reasons such as management disputes, being dropped by labels and more often than not internal strife among members. In certain cases such as Gloria Estefan, Kenny Rogers and Selena Gomez the bands include the name of the key performer or the lead vocalist. However, there are others who leave the band as their talents are not recognized such as Louise from Eternal and Robbie Williams from Take That. Sometimes the face of the band is more or less the lead vocalist and they proceed to launch their solo career such as Gwen Stefani, Rob Thomas, George Michael etc. When one is part of a duo it is also quite easy to become prominent when launching a solo career as in the cases of Cher, Tina Turner, Paul Simon and CeeLo Green.

The King of Pop - Michael Jackson tops the list as his solo career trumped the success of the Jackson 5 by way more than he even anticipated. The Supremes although considered as the best selling Motown act of all time can be overshadowed by the fame earned by Diana Ross during her solo career. However, it is Beyonce and Justin Timberlake who can be considered as being the most influential solo female and male artists of all time in terms of starting their career as being part of a band. This is a compilation of the most successful artists who were once part of a band/group in comparison to the success of the band/group.