RocNation Jailbait: Alexis Jordan

Seventeen-year-old Alexis Jordan is the newest member to join the Dynasty. Jay-Z signed her to his RocNation label this week after being blown away, along with thousands of viewers, by her numerous YouTube covers. Alexis made her debut to the spotlight in 2007 on the inaugural season of America's Got Talent and is now set to release her first single "Happiness". Take a look at her cover of "Nothing on You". The girl can sing and flow!






Listen to more on Alexis Jordan's YouTube page.

Bieber World Domination

Well, it's official. The 16-year-old R&B charmer that is Justin Bieber has done it. Done what you ask? Oh, nothing really. Just reach #1 on the Billboard charts by selling 283,000 copies of his new album My World 2.0 in one week! He is the youngest solo male artist to hit #1 since Stevie Wonder in 1963 at age 13. Congratulations little man.

MGMT Goes Off The Proverbial Deep End

I, along with everyone that owns a pair of Ray Bans and/or lives in Brooklyn, was, and still am incredibly excited about the new MGMT album, Congratulations, that drops in two weeks. Can't wait that long? You can listen to it now on their website. But let's talk about the video that debuted today for the first single, "Flash Delirium". W T F??? I am scarred for life. Between the ventriloquist dummies and the talking tracheotomy, it's safe to say I am literally going to have nightmares for weeks. I'm really confused about what they were trying to express/depict in this video, if anything in particular.

Watch if you dare to make sense of it all!

X-Tina's Back and Not Herself

Christina Aguilera debuted her new single "Not Myself Tonight" on her website this afternoon. It's the first single off her new album Bionic due out June 8. Very electronic and synth heavy. Definitely a different path for her. I like!

Beauty According to Jessica

I don't know if any of you have tuned into VH1's new show Jessica Simpson's The Price of Beauty lately, but I am so in love with it. What's not to love? Jessica Simpson, along with BFF's CaCee Cobb and celebrity hairstylist Ken Paves, is back on the air with her unintentional hilarity. Though, I have to admit I appreciate that she is a down to earth goofball on national television, brave enough to be herself even if it is silly or obnoxious. I can really respect that from a girl who gets relentlessly abused by the media regarding her image and love life.

In addition to her gems of wisdom, the show highlights beauty all over the world and the extreme lengths women go to in order to acheive it. In Thailand, women bleach their skin and elongate their necks. In Indian, women use strange spa treatments and dress in bright, ornate fashions. The show always slows it down a bit to note the dangers of chasing an idea of beauty too far. A trip to France introduces a former fashion model who developed severe anorexia as a result of years of criticism from a tough industry. She now exhibits her body on billboard advertisements in Europe as a warning to women of the harsh reality of the business. It's about time a show came along that at least offers a little bit of balance to these incredibly unrealistic ideals of beauty. Will it change the way all women see themselves? Most definitely not, but it gives a voice to a new perspective that, thanks to Jessica Simpson, is finally being heard on a more public platform.

Next week, Uganda, where "Fat is beautiful". Watch Jessica Simpson's The Price of Beauty on VH1, Mondays at 10PM.

P.S. Jessica wrote and recorded the show's theme song with alt god Billy Corgan.

OMG!

Usher's new album, Raymond Vs. Raymond is out today. Here is the video for "OMG", his new single with will.i.am written all over it. I can't put my finger on what it is that I like about it, but it grew on me after a few listens.

OK Go Does It Again

Viral video stars OK Go have created yet another masterpiece in an attempt to follow their breakout success with "Here It Goes Again" (Remember? The one with the treadmills?) It's for their new single "This Too Shall Pass" off of their latest album Of the Blue Colour of the Sky. It took over 60 tries to complete it!

New Word for Hipsters - VOTE!

The folks over at Gawker.com think its about time we rename those lovable characters we call "hipsters''. The hackneyed term has lost its luster, so Gawker asked its readers to narrow it down to 20. Here's what they came up with. VOTE NOW!

My Favorite? It's a tie between Trendslut and ShamWow! I know a few of those.

Frightened Rabbit - "Nothing Like You"

Think Bloc Party meets The Killers meets Temper Trap with a Scottish accent. Loving this song. It's a track off of their INCREDIBLE new album The Winter of Mixed Drinks.




Listen to more here!

Bootleg Mashups

Here are some cool mashups. Definitely worth a listen. Check him out on SunCloud.com

(c/o my #1 fan in Korea)

Get Ur Cure On (Missy Elliott vs. The Cure) by Bootleg Mashups

Pea-Proof (Black Eyed Peas vs. La Roux) by Bootleg Mashups

Ke$ha Just Wants To Have Fun (Ke$ha vs. Cyndi Lauper) by Bootleg Mashups

Detox (Amy Winehouse vs. Britney Spears) by Bootleg Mashups

Gangsta Gangsta (Chromeo vs. Snoop Dogg vs. Ice Cube vs. 50 Cent vs. Coolio) by Bootleg Mashups

Idiots on Parade

At long last, Broadway has gone punk with the highly anticipated debut of Green Day's American Idiot. I had doubts and expectations of Broadway choreographers and songwriters taking one of the most sacred albums of the past decade and hussy-ing it up with frilly Broadway bullshit. I was (happily) mistaken. American Idiot was smart, funny, and an absolute spectacle for the eyes and ears. The amps were blaring, the pipes were wailing and there was nothing you could do about it. Except watch in awe.

Upon entry, Sharpies await ticket holders to tag the walls of the St. James Theater entryway. Pretty cool idea. If your mind isn't totally blown by the opening number, American Idiot, you will follow the story of three "Idiots" as they try to make something of themselves, accepting responsibility outside of their parking lot and off of their couch. Its a fundamental idea that speaks to any teen/twentysomething suffocating in their hometown crying out for something more. Mind you, this type of individual flooded the audience. The idea is evident throughout the record and highlighted in the plot of the stage adaptation.

Lead Idiot Johnny/Jesus of Suburbia is played by John Gallagher Jr. of Spring Awakening fame for which he won a TONY for Best Featured Actor in a Musical in 2007. He does not disappoint. All three leading men surprisingly deliver with a lot of heart and Billie Joe attitude. The energy was that of a concert rather than a musical, or any musical I've ever seen. The musical version of the rock opera has come a long way from its original CD release. It has been under development by the Berkley Repertory Theater in Green Day's Northern California hometown since 2008. I was happy to see that Mr. Armstrong penned the book to the musical along with TONY Award winning Spring Awakening director Michael Mayer. The duo proved to be a perfect pair, staying true to the vision of the album, orally and visually, without making it corny or unbelievable. The music alone needs to be listened to with a fresh set of ears. Tossing preconceived feelings and radio interpretations of the songs away and listening to the lyrics and the story it creates is really the key to it all. Then and only then does it become the masterpiece that these three Bay area punks meant it to be.

Overall, American Idiot is the best thing to hit Broadway since RENT. Fundamentally, it has the same bad ass style and heartfelt music as the Jonathan Larson classic, both sending a very powerful message to its adoring audience.

EVERYONE GO GET TICKETS NOW! Thank me later.

Sidenote: Green Day sat in the Orchestra watching their rock opera finally come to fruition on opening night in the best city in the world. And it didn't suck! Bravo.

American Idiot began previews last night, continuing to mid April. Regular showings begin on April 20th . Tickets are available on Telecharge.

Janet likes Drake!

Janet Jackson was on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon tonight. Aside from Jimmy Fallon totally geeking out like a ninth grade school girl during the interview, he asked Miss Jackson who she's currently listening to. Her response? "Drake. And Gaga." EVERYONE is into dapper rapper Drake.

She clearly isn't referring to his new single "Over". (Big thumbs down)

Janet is currently promoting her new Tyler Perry movie Why Did I Get Married, Too? and her Number One's album.

The Runaways LA Premiere

Here are a few pics from last Thursday's LA Premiere of The Runaways. The biographical film about the first mainstream female rock band stars Kristen Stewart as punk matriarch Joan Jett and an all grown up Dakota Fanning as Runaway's lead vocalist Cherie Currie. The film and soundtrack features both Kristen and Dakota singing all the original Runaways material. The soundtrack also has a new song from the real Joan and Cherie, marking their first time recording since 1977. The movie opens this Friday!

Can't wait to see it. Always love confident, talented females rocking out.

This Girl Can Tour

For those of you (including yours truly) that didn't catch Gaga on her recent tour because scalpers raped our limited ticketing outlets, here's your chance to witness an icon live. Lady Gaga's camp announced on her website today that she will embark on a 31-date North American tour starting June 28 in Montreal and ending September 19 in Raleigh, North Carolina. Whew! That's a lot of gigs for less than 3 months. Go girl!

What's the name of the tour, you ask? Gaga told Ryan Seacrest in a February interview on LA's KIIS-FM that, "It's still called Monster Ball, but it's more of a musical and less of a concert." How exciting!

Naturally, Gaga will be topping herself with this round of touring and is rumored to be shooting a show in 3D and releasing it on DVD. No official opener has been announced yet, noted only as "Special Guests" for now. Tickets go on sale this Friday (March 19) on LiveNation, so standby those Macbooks, people! You do NOT want to miss this.

P.S. New Yorkers. She's booked the Garden!

Lady Gaga tour dates:
6/28, Montreal, QC (Bell Centre)
7/1, Boston, MA (TD Garden)
7/4, Atlantic City, NJ (Boardwalk Hall)
7/6, New York, NY (Madison Square Garden)
7/11, Toronto, ON (Air Canada Centre)
7/14, Cleveland, OH (Quicken Loans Arena)
7/15, Indianapolis, IN (Conseco Fieldhouse)
7/17, St. Louis, MO (Scottrade Center)
7/20, Oklahoma City, OK (Ford Center)
7/22, Dallas, TX (American Airlines Center)
7/25, Houston, TX (Toyota Center)
7/28, Denver, CO (Pepsi Center)
7/31, Phoenix, AZ (US Airways Center)
8/3, Kansas City, MO (Sprint Center)
8/11, Los Angeles, CA (Staples Center)
8/13, Las Vegas, NV (MGM Grand)
8/16, San Jose, CA (HP Pavilion)
8/19, Portland, OR (Rose Garden)
8/21, Tacoma, WA (Tacoma Dome)
8/23, Vancouver, BC (General Motors Place)
8/26, Edmonton, AB (Rexall Place)
8/30, St. Paul, MN (Xcel Energy Center)
9/1, Milwaukee, WI (Bradley Center)
9/4, Detroit, MI (The Palace Of Auburn Hills)
9/5, Pittsburgh, PA (Consol Energy Center)
9/7, Washington, DC (Verizon Center)
9/8, Charlottesville, VA (John Paul Jones Arena)
9/14, Philadelphia, PA (Wachovia Center)
9/16, Hartford, CT (XL Center)
9/18, Charlotte, NC (Time Warner Cable Arena)
9/19, Raleigh, NC (RBC Center)

Motion City Soundtrack Can Dance!

What's the secret to success? Emotional, heartfelt lyrics? Not necessarily. Catchy hook? Maybe. Incredibly choreographed, borderline cheesy dance number in a gymnasium? Definitely! Hey, it worked for Britney Spears and Fall Out Boy!

After years of mainstream obscurity, Motion City Soundtrack is finally getting some much deserved airtime with their video for "Her Words Destroyed My Planet", the first single from their latest release My Dinosaur Year. A bit of advice to bands out there trying to make it in the biz, skip the years of nonsense and go straight to the flashy dances and ridiculous outfits.

WATCH IMMEDIATELY!