New Music Monday

New Music Monday is back kids! Check out my latest musical gems below:

1. Poker Face - Glee Cast I know the episode with this song aired a long time ago but I just finally watched it last week and I have to say that I'm in love with this version of Lady Gaga's infamous dance tune. It seriously rocks and I'm proud to say that I totally enjoy singing along to it at the top of my lungs.

2. Blind Faith - Chase & Status "A heavyhearted, soul-baring rave-revival plea that take U.K. warehouse-party nostalgia to vertiginous heights". (Thanks SPIN magazine for this perfection song explanation!

3. Nat Geo - G-Slide & Chris Lee Despite containing several incredibly dark and sad lines, the accompanying soft choir create quite the pretty combination. I never would have discovered this song if it hadn't been for my music magazine subscriptions.

4. Fake Empire - The National Yes, this is an older song by this indie rock band but I'm just now getting into them and I love this one! If you are a fan, what are some other songs by them that I should have? They are going to be here in LA soon so I might have to check them out.

5. Cardiac Arrest - Teddybears & Robyn You gotta love the Swedes! On this track, singer Robyn joins fellow Swedes, Teddybears on this frothy disco rock tune. Rolling Stone magazine calls it "a pinch of arsenic in a tequila shot". What a description! : )

6. You Are a Tourist - Death Cab for Cutie If you haven't heard of Death Cab for Cutie, then you've been living under a rock! This group's sound is amazing and their songs are both beautiful and thoughtful. This is their newest song and feels more inspirational and sweet then most of their other melancholy ones.

7. Surrender Album - The Chemical Brothers My roommate Swati let me burn this entire album of hers and I can honestly say that my life will never be the same. I'm not really sure how I've been doing all this running without The Chemical Brothers?! The music is pure adrenaline and keep you moving to the very end of the album. What other album or songs should I own, Chemical Brothers fans?

8. Till the World Ends - Britney Spears, Nicki Minaj & Ke$ha I can't help it but this is a great song to dance or work out to. I'm not Britney's biggest fan so I was excited to see that Nicki Minaj was on the remix, whom I love. I usually don't even like remixes but this one is fun.

9. Run the World - Beyonce / Judas - Lady Gaga I feel the same way about both of these songs... I really really want to love them but for the time being, I'm struggling. I can't get into them but perhaps I just haven't listened to them enough. I love these ladies so here's hoping that I'll come around to them soon. Are you a fan of them yet?

Got any songs that you are loving these days? I always love music suggestions!

Prince!

P-Powerful R- Riveting I- Interesting N- New Wave C- Creative E- Electrifying

Prince has produced 10 platinum albums and thirty top 40 singles! He has won 7 Grammy Awards, a Golden Globe and an Academy Award. Whoa!

On Friday night I had the immense pleasure of seeing the legendary artist, PRINCE in concert. Yes, be jealous, be very jealous! : ) In a word, the whole show was electrifying! (Thanks SP!)

I will admit that honestly I've never been his biggest fan and have many friends that have wanted to kill me for saying that. But I just never really understood him or most of his music. While I still think he is incredibly eccentric and even odd at times, he puts on quite a show and his songs are timeless. I am so grateful that I got the chance to see him perform live. I believe that you learn sooo much from that opportunity. Plus it was fun to transport back to the 80's for the night! : )


First off, he sounds exactly like he did back at the height of his career. Some of my friends would say that he will always be at the height of his career but you get what I mean... I can say for sure that this 52 year old still has all the musical talent, the confidence, the moves and more. He is in LA doing a 21 Show 'Residency' Concert Series. The concert I went to was at The Forum in Inglewood but apparently he'll be performing in a few other spots as well. If you haven't seen him yet and you are in LA, I highly urge you to go. It feels almost ridiculous to pay only $25 to see such a musical icon at work.
One of the first songs he performed is my personal favorite, "Raspberry Beret" so I was absolutely thrilled from the beginning to end.

Before he took the stage:


He lit up the stage literally and figuratively! : )


Here is my roommate Swati and our good friend Amina half-way thru the concert.


Alicia Keys was his special surprise guest performer! I was freaking out when I saw her appear from the hole in the stage floor! I love her and never expected to see her there. They sang an awesome duet of her song "How Come You Don't Call Me?"


Have you seen Prince in concert? What musical legends are you dieing to see? I would LOVE to see Madonna, Janet Jackson, Christina Aguilera and so many more! : )

20 Best Songs of 2010

I know this is rather late but better late than never. Right? According to the January issue of the music magazine, SPIN, here's what they think the 20 best songs of 2010 were:

1. Cee-Lo Green - Fuck You
2. Arcade Fire - Ready to Start
3. Kanye West & Dwele - Power
4. LCD Soundsystem - All I Want
5. Neil Young - Hitchhiker
6. Deerhunter - Helicopter
7. Kanye West - Runaway
8. Robyn - Cry When You Get Older
9. Janelle Monae & Big Boi - Tightrope
10. Gucci Mane - Lemonade
11. Dom - Living in America
12. The Dream & T.I - Make Up Bag
13. Superchunk - Digging for Something
14. Chiddy Bang - Opposite of Adults
15. Tracey Thorn - Hormones
16. Das Racist - hahahaha jk?
17. The Black Keys - Tighten Up
18. Tame Impala - Solitude is Bliss
19. Yeasayer - Ambling Alp
20. Les Savy Fav - Let's Get Out of Here

Have you heard of all these? For a music fanatic, I'm embarrassed to say that there are couple songs on this list that I've never heard before. But I suppose it's impossible to know about every single song ever created.

Music Lesson

As this is part music blog and part my adventures here in LA blog, I think it's mandatory that from time to time, I discuss my latest music obsessions. I subscribe to a couple music magazines and today I had some time to finally go through the new music sections and check the songs out on itunes. I absolutely love doing this! : )

Here are a few new songs that I learned about:

• Whip my Hair- Willow I've known about this song for awhile but haven't ever really listened to it carefully until today. At first I wasn't a fan but it's definitely bitten me now and I am in love. Yes, this Will Smith's little 9 year old daughter. She got signed onto Jay-Z's label recently. I dare you to not think this is a catchy tune! ♫♪♪♫

• A Town Called Obsolete-Andreya Triana Spin magazine describes this singer's voice perfectly, "a voice like sugared smoke, signals a fiery lyric that nods to the jam's righteous urban indignation". That is lovely. ♫♪♪♫

• Wake Up Everybody-John Legend, The Roots, Common & Melanie Fiona I love pretty much anything and everything that John Legend is a part of so I knew that I would enjoy this even more with Common attached as well. It's a sweet song with a great message. We all know how much I like those kinds of songs. ♫♪♪♫

• How I Look for You-Juliette Commagere There are moments of sheer melodic poetry mixed in with catchy choruses. This is my kind of a song. It's got a little bit of everything for everyone. What's there not to love? ♫♪♪♫

• What's My Name-Rihanna & Drake Radio loves this song and by love I mean that it's on the radio all the f-ing time! Fortunately, I'm really diggin' it so I don't mind hearing it. My favorite line from the song is "Say my name, say my name, wear it out. ♫♪♪♫

• Don't Leave My Mind-Azure Ray The two singers that make up this group have incredible harmonies that literally waft together so effortlessly. The lyrics are sweet and so simple. ♫♪♪♫

• Matt & Kim- Block After Block Their new album just came out last week and I was really excited. I've always been a big fan of this group. They have a different sound and their videos are always super happy and endearing. ♫♪♪♫

Music

"Music is a moral law. It gives soul to the universe, wings to the mind, flight to the imagination, a charm to sadness, gaiety and life to everything. It is the essence of order and lends itself to all that is good and just and beautiful." - Plato

That pretty much describes my feelings about music. I honestly couldn't live without my tunes. I wake up to it, I get dressed with it, I work with it on, I drive with it on, I wind down with it and I listen to it before going to bed. It makes the otherwise boring task more enjoyable. It is very difficult for me to describe all my feelings for music. I love the way an amazing song makes me feel inside and the power it can have over me. There is really nothing quite like it. I love all types of music, seriously everything from rap to opera. I don't really care much for country or heavy metal. However I can appreciate all types of music and this is what makes me such a well rounded music fan. For the long flight to Jamaica tomorrow I have prepared an amazing playlist of my 90 current favorite songs. I hope that this list will encourage you to check these songs out and then ask me to burn you a CD with them on it, cause you know I enjoy doing that! : )

1. After Hours - We Are Scientists
2. Again & Again - The Bird and The Bee
3. And Still - Reba McEntire
4. And You Give - Matthew Barber
5. Angel - Kate Voegele
6. Annie - Mat Kearney
7. Anyone Else but You - Michael Cera & Ellen Page
8. Assassin - John Mayer Battle Studies
9. Baby, You're My Light - Richard Hawley
10. Be Gentle With Me - The Boy Least Likely To
11. Be Mine! - Robyn
12. Blow Away - A Fine Frenzy
13. Brooklyn - Wakey!Wakey!
14. Chai Tea Latte - Angel Taylor
15. Clair de Lune - The APM Orchestra
16. Do You Feel Me? - Anthony Hamilton
17. Don't Upset the Rhythm (Go Baby Go) - Noisettes
18. Electric Feel - MGMT
19. Electric Renaissance - Belle & Sebastian
20. Eyes on Fire - Blue Foundation
21. Falling Slowly - Glen Hansard & Marketa Irglova
22. Family Reunion - Jill Scott
23. Feel This - Bethany Joy Galeotti & Enation
24. Fidelity - Regina Spektor
25. Fifteen - Taylor Swift
26. First Love - ADELE
27. First of the Gang - Zee Avi
28. Flightless Bird - Iron & Wine
29. For Blue Skies - Strays Don't Sleep
30. Foundations - Kate Nash
31. Friends, Lovers or Nothing - John Mayer
32. Girls Just Want to Have Fun - Greg Laswell
33. God Bless the Child - Michelle Featherstone
34. He Lays In the Reins - Calexico & Iron & Wine
35. Heartbreak Warfare - John Mayer
36. Here Comes Your Man - Meaghan Smith
37. Hero - Regina Spektor
38. Hometown Glory - ADELE
39. Hummingbird - John Mayer
40. I Believe - Stevie Wonder
41. I Could Break Your Heart Any Day of the Week - Mandy Moore
42. I Decided - Solange Sol-Angel & the Hadley St.
43. I Want You - Third Eye Blind
44. In My Arms - Plumb
45. In the Deep - Bird York
46. Just Ain't Gonna Work Out - Mayer Hawthorne
47. Keep Breathing - Ingrid Michaelson
48. Let Go - Frou Frou
49. Lie In the Sound - Trespassers William
50. Little Star - Stina Nordenstam
51. Lonely - Bebel Gilberto
52. Love, Save the Empty - Erin McCarley
53. Lover's Spit - Broken Social Scene
54. The Man Who Can't Be Moved - The Script
55. Merry Happy - Kate Nash
56. My Husband Makes Movies - Marion Cotillard
57. Popular - Kristin Chenoweth
58. Portions for Foxes - Rilo Kiley
59. Possibility - Lykke Li
60. Ride - Carey Brothers
61. Right as Rain - ADELE
62. She Moves in Her Own Way - The Kooks
63. She's Losing It - Belle & Sebastian
64. Shower Me With Your Sweet Love - Smokey Robinson
65. Sleepyhead - Passion Pit
66. Someday - Bryan Greenberg
67. Someone to Watch Over Me - Blossom Dearie
68. Songbird - Eva Cassidy
69. Speechless - Lady GaGa
70. Stepping Stone - Duffy
71. Still Breathing - Rita Springer
72. Stolen Away on 55th & 3rd - Dave Matthews Band
73. Sugar Town - Zooey Deschanel
74. Summertime -The Potbelleez
75. Sweet Disposition - The Temper Trap
76. Sweet Love - Anita Baker
77. There is a Light that Never Goes Out - The Smiths
78. This Love - Elizabeth Fraser
79. This Never Happened Before - Paul McCartney
80. Today Has Been Okay - Emiliana Torrini
81. Torch - Alanis Morissette
82. Us 4:49 Regina Spektor
83. Use Somebody - Kings of Leon
84. Walk in My Shoes -Emily King
85. Walking on a Dream - Empire of the Sun
86. We are the People - Empire of the Sun
87. What Are You Afraid Of? - West Indian Girl
88. Who's to Say? -Vanessa Carlton
89. World Spins Madly On - The Weepies
90. Your Joy - Chrisette Michele