RANDOM SIGHT + SOUNDS

Tyler, The Creator has brought an eccentric vision and innovative sound to hip-hop since his debut solo album back in 2009. Now with his ninth studio album, "Don't Tap The Glass", The Creator (born Tyler Okonma) has continued to push the sonic boundaries of what is considered hip-hop. Recorded during his Chromakopia: The World Tour that began earlier this year and the shortest album (at twenty-eight minutes) of his career, Tyler has delivered an unpredictable collection that boldly fuses house, techno and funk in exciting and colorful ways. Two singles have been dropped to support the album: "Sugar On My Tongue" is an electro-beat driven tune describing how tasty his lady is to him. While "Ring Ring Ring" is a blast of techno-funk that has him calling his lover who he misses, desperately hoping she'll answer.





Here is a round-up of new songs that is on my playlist: Sabrina Carpenter's follow-up album, "Man's Best Friend" is out now and the latest single, "Tears" is a disco-pop track with the video featuring actor, Colman Domingo in drag; After co-writing several songs for Gracie Abrams, Audrey Hobert has just released her debut single, "Sue Me"; Former American Idol contestant, Johnny Keyser, who now goes by John K, has continued his career in music with his recent third studio album, "Salt + Light" and the single, "Never Been in Love"; singer/actress, Reneé Rapp has delivered a soulful kiss-off with a live version of  "I Think I like You Better When You're Gone" from her second studio album, "Bite Me"; r&b vocalist, Kehlani has a new single, "Folded" which asks a lover to reconsider after they're hasty break-up and Doja Cat has returned with an '80's inspired dance track, "Jealous Type" which is co-written and produced by Y2K and Jack Antonoff.

And a new single from Lady Gaga, "The Dead Dance" has been released. This pulsing synth-pop song is part of the soundtrack for the second season of "Wednesday" with the singer making an appearance on the supernatural comedy show based on the character in "The Addams Family". Tim Burton directs the black & white music video for "The Dead Dance" which features Gaga, in an eerie gothic setting, as a cracked porcelain doll that comes to life.

HOT AND FRESH OUT THE KITCHEN

Fresh off her dazzling performance in the Disney live-action musical, "The Little Mermaid", Halle Bailey is here to remind us she has not abandoned her music career. After spending much of her professional life with her sister, Chlöe (who had released her debut studio album, "In Pieces" in March), the twenty-three-year-old singer has released a single, "Angel" which is the first song off her own upcoming solo album. This uplifting ballad (written by Bailey, Sebastian Kole, and the song's producer, Ron "Neff-U" Feemster) explores her experiences of growing up as a Black woman in this world. And Bailey will be back on the big screen soon as she will make an appearance in the musical adaptation of "The Color Purple" due in theaters on Christmas Day.





"Freak Me Now", the latest single from Jessie Ware's euphoric, disco-inspired, "That! Feels Good!", is a now remixed and features fellow Brit dance floor veteran, Róisín Murphy. This pairing does not disappoint, with these fierce vocalists tearing up on this retro track and team up together in a fun, campy music video.

And the latest song from Doja Cat's upcoming fourth studio album has dropped. Coasting along on a sample of the Dionne Warwick's classic, "Walk On By", "Paint The Town Red" is about the singer not caring what her haters think, ignoring them all and enjoying her life. The accompanying music video certainly give you the impression that Doja Cat is "the Lady Gaga of Hip-hop" with the clip featuring outrageous imagery that includes scenes of her dancing intimately with "Death", throwing bloody chunks of meat and riding on a giant dragon through the sky. And there is still no release date or title of Doja's next album.

NEW SOUNDS

Since the very beginning of her career, Janelle Monae has been proudly queer, long before she even came out publicly as pansexual and non-binary. And with her fourth studio album, "The Age of Pleasure", the singer now feels liberated to express her music even more openly. This collection delivers feel-good vibes with songs threaded with reggae and Afro-beats that focus on the sensual pleasures of the mind and flesh. Even Monae's image has loosened up. Gone are the little, black & white suits and in their place is the singer in skimpy clothing, revealing much more of her beautiful satin skin than we had ever seen before from the artist. This includes the music video for the single, "Lipstick Lover" which shows a lot of female skin and has even been age-restricted on Youtube.

The lawsuit involving pop star, Kesha against her former producer, Dr. Luke, which had begun in 2014, has been quietly settled just a few days ago. Her fifth studio album, "Gag Order" had been released last month with the title making a not-so veiled reference to her on-going legal battle which left her unable to comment publicly. Much like her previous album, "High Road", this record touches on the depression and emotional trauma she has been going through these past few years due to this case. And the songs reflect her overcoming these difficulties with the return of a lighter musical mood, with experimental art-pop and bouncy, electronic beats she was known for in her early days. Kesha plans to hit the road in October to promote the album which I'm sure she will be able to approach from a clearer state-of-mind.





Here are some recent new sounds from Doja Cat, Gwen Stefani, Lana Del Rey, Carly Rae Jepsen and Jaz Elise:

After years of releasing singles, EPs, making numerous featured artist appearances and a studio album that was scrapped then leaked, Kim Petras has finally released her official debut album. With "Feed The Beast", the Grammy Award winner has dropped a mixed-bag of a collection that exhibits the varied styles of dance-pop music she has been creating since 2017. The album features some previously heard tracks like the disco-pop ditty, "Coconuts"; "Unholy", the worldwide smash hit with Sam Smith that won them a Grammy this year; "Brrr" and "Alone" that samples "Better Off Alone" by Alice Deejay and has Nicki Minaj providing her trademark sassy rap. But the rest of "Feed The Beast" feels surprisingly safe and generic, even with her long-time producer, the problematic Dr. Luke having a heavy hand on the project, lacking the powerful magic that made so many of her previous songs so fascinating and fun.

MY FAVORITE SONGS OF 2022

The one thing that became undeniably clear in 2022 is that record labels no longer held carte blanche over what would become a hit song. With TikTok now a dominant force in many people's lives, the app is now the go-to platform to introduce new music through creative clips, dance challenges, established artists leaking demos and aspiring musicians sharing their tracks.

And once TikTok decides a song is hot, the rest of the world tends to follow with shocking speed. Even songs from the past can be revived on the app (with Kate Bush's 1985 single, "Running Up That Hill" as the year's greatest example), becoming wildly popular once again but to a whole new generation of listeners. I think It's great that everyone has a fair shot at getting their music heard on their terms and be able to have a hit outside of the standard music industry that have long held control. However I am also concerned that this type of fast success without much professional guidance will make it even harder for musicians to establish a long-term career that will become substantial and lucrative for them.

I've been sharing songs that I loved throughout last year but here are some (largely TikTok hits) of my favorites that I didn't get a chance:

MOVIE SOUNDS

It has been over thirty-five years since Tom Cruise appeared in the action-drama, "Top Gun" which helped turn him into a major movie-star. Now there is a very long awaited sequel on the horizon with "Top Gun: Maverick" finally due to reach theaters on May 27th after the pandemic delayed the release by two years. And an unlikely artist has contributed a love ballad for the soundtrack of the film: Lady Gaga. "Hold My Hand" (co-written and produced by Gaga and Bloodpop along with additional production assistance by Benjamin Rice) is a rock driven track that initially brings to mind a classic power ballad of the '80s yet this is undeniably an offbeat, emotionally powerful Lady Gaga song. The video drives the nostalgic vibe even further home with Gaga, in her version of military drag, performing the song while clips from the upcoming movie that show us the now-Captain Pete "Maverick" Mitchell today, are played.

Baz Luhrmann, the filmmaker behind the colorfully vibrant works, "Romeo + Juliet", "The Great Gatsby" and "Moulin Rouge!", is delivering a movie based on the life of the King of Rock & Roll, Elvis Presley with "Elvis" which is due in theaters on June 24th. The movie doesn't appear to be your typical bio-pic and much like what he did with the soundtracks for his previous films, there will be contemporary artists performing classic songs by Presley and music inspired by the musician. One of the songs recently released is "Vegas" by Doja Cat. Using a sample of Big Mama Thornton's 1952 hit song, "Hound Dog" (which Presley would later cover in 1956 and make even more popular), Doja Cat delivers a rap/hip-hop flavored track that has her taking down a lover who proves not to be worth her time. This great tune makes me curious to hear what else that will be on this soundtrack.

2021 VMAS

It was forty years ago this year that MTV was launched and delivered to the world the music video, a perfect blend of energized visuals with hard-driving music that completely changed how we were exposed to new songs. I was drawn to the channel immediately as it combined my great love of cinema and music and I would spend as much time as I possibly could watching my MTV. There is no denying MTV helped create pop stars, aiding these musicians by promoting their songs through the rotation of their videos which also defined these performers with a distinctive image. Sure, some of these artists probably would have been fine without the music channel but there is no doubt that many were able to achieve incredible global success with the far-reaching assistance of MTV.

The 2021 Video Music Awards celebrates the legacy of MTV and while the channel doesn't really show these clips anymore, they still enthusiastically honor the artistry behind the music video. Held at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, Doja Cat was this year's host and while she might be one of the hottest pop acts at the moment, the singer didn't leave much of an impact. As a host, she was barely on stage, didn't say anything meaningful and never made much of an impression beyond her progressively weird outfits (which included some sort of worm-like contraption and a literal chair on her head). Even Madonna, who showed up just to kick off the show, was able to make more of a significant impression in her brief appearance where the still rebellious sixty-three year old highlighted her completely covered yet fully exposed, oddly enhanced backside.

And the Queen of Pop was just one of several musical artists from MTV's glory days that appeared throughout the evening to present awards. There was Madonna's "rival", Cyndi Lauper; Tommy Lee of the metal band, Motley Crew; AJ McLean of Backstreet Boys, Lance Bass of N'Sync and Nick Lachey of 98 Degrees who represented the "Boy Band" era and the still very witty, David Lee Roth of Van Halen. Busta Rhymes appeared on the show (along with his hype-man, Spliff Star) to do a melody of many of his hits from the '90's and '00's but the hip-hop legend was largely out-of-breath and low-energy.

Even though Nicki Minaj and Lorde (due to a "change in production elements") decided to drop out at the last moment, there were still plenty of big names that turned up live on stage. Some highlights included Justin Bieber appearing with The Kid Laroi to do their hit, "Stay" and then Biebs did his newest single, "Ghosts"; Ed Sheeran took to a stage at the Brooklyn Bridge Park to deliver his latest single, "Shivers"; lovebirds, Camila Cabello and Shawn Mendes appeared separately to perform their songs, "Don't Go Yet" and "Summer of Love" respectively; and our host, Doja Cat had to get on stage, doing a mash-up of "Been Like This" and "You Right" while soaring high above the audience in the air. A few of my favorite appearances included a fierce Chlöe performing (without her sister, Halle) her first solo song, "Have Mercy"; Normani bringing her hit, "Wild Life" to life with a sizzling performance; Kacey Musgraves brought a touch of country-pop while encircled by a ring of fire with the title track of her new album, "Star-Crossed" and the always welcome, Alicia Keys delivering a new song and a tribute to New York City with "Empire State of Mind". And Global Icon Award winners, Foo Fighters did a roaring set of their songs that reminded us that rock & roll is far from dead.

As for the awards, Lil Nas X and Olivia Rodrigo were the big winners of the night, each receiving three awards with Rodrigo winning Song of the Year for "Drivers License" and Best New Artist while Nas took the big Video of the Year award for his controversial clip, "Montero (Call Me by Your Name)". These young entertainers each had a moment on the show to make their presence felt with big, splashy production numbers surrounded by a small army of dancers. But this was were their inexperience as live performers came in to sharp focus. Nas and Rodrigo both looked slightly uncomfortable on stage while struggling to stand out from their massive productions.

This points out a glaring problem with some of today's musicians who manage to get a hit record yet never paid any dues by learning to perform their music in front of an audience. Lil Nas X and Ms Rodrigo are appealing pop stars and have made some great records but are they artists that will still be around in ten years? Five years? No one really knows as talent alone is not necessarily enough to keep people interested. Yet I think the era of "American Idol" insta-pop-stars has done a great disservice to young singers who think skipping much of the long, hard work involved and jumping straight to fame is enough to maintain a career.

RANDOM SIGHTS + SOUNDS

Rina Sawayama and her 2020 debut album, "Sawayama" was critically acclaimed yet this amazing record still didn't get nearly enough attention by the public that it deserved. But there was one famous fan who was paying close attention: Elton John proclaimed Rina's pop album was one of his favorites of the year. And that lead to a friendship between the two British performers and now a musical collaboration. The veteran artist teamed-up with the thirty year old vocalist for a cover of a track off her album, "Chosen Family". This stripped down version details the importance of having the support of people who may not be related to you but are just as close as any biological family member, something of great significance particularly to queer people.



Here are a few new songs I'm enjoying right now I would like to share:

Indie rocker, Liz Phair decided to create her own path to making music after returning to her family home in Chicago after failing in an attempt to enter the business in San Francisco. Beginning with her 1993 debut, "Exile in Guyville", Fair became a critical darling and a fixture of the modern rock scene. And while Phair has been busy touring and working on projects, she had not released any new music in almost eleven years. That is about to change with the announcement of her upcoming seventh studio album, "Soberish", due out in June, and the first single, "Spanish Doors". The album was inspired by music of the singer's youth which included the sounds of 1980's new wave and art rock. "Spanish Doors" looks at when someone's perfect life comes apart, leaving them unsure of who they are anymore. 

RANDOM SIGHTS + SOUNDS

5 Star were a British pop-soul group who were largely popular in their native country during the mid 1980's. This family act began as teens, comprised of siblings Stedman, Lorraine, Denise, Doris and Delroy Pearson, that was clearly modeled after the Jackson 5 with their father, Buster Pearson, a former session musician, managing them. Although I didn't really hear their music on the radio in this country, I became familiar with 5 Star from their music videos I caught on the Canadian version of MTV, MuchMusic.

Their breakout single, "All Fall Down" reached the UK top-twenty in 1985 and that was followed by the hits, "System Addict", "Can't Wait Another Minute", "Rain or Shine", "Love Take Over" and "Let Me Be the One" which would be their biggest success in the US, peaking at number two on the Hot R&B chart. 5 Star went on to win the BRIT Award for Best British Group in 1987. But by 1989, 5 Star saw their songs failing to chart and after getting dropped by their record label, the group informally disbanded in 1995. If you are a fan or have never heard of their music, here's a small sample of the catchy songs and slick moves from 5 Star for your enjoyment:







Here are a few recent releases I'm enjoying at the moment:







I was surprised to hear a cover of "Put Your Records On", first performed by singer/songwriter, Corinne Bailey Rae back in 2006, from Ritt Momney. This Utah-based act (which is a play on the Republican Senator's name) was an indie-rock band but is now just Jack Rutter after the other members left to become Mormon missionaries. Feeling depressed while stuck in quarantine at his parents' house, Rutter decided to record Bailey's joyous hit as a way create some sense of happiness for himself. TikTok helped this unlikely cover get some attention, becoming a viral hit and eventually helped this re-imagined song chart across the globe.



And Ms Rae gave her blessing to Rutter's version of her song. Here is a bonus of Corrine Bailey Rae performing "Put Your Records On" live:



And to close this out, here are two of the biggest names of 1960's British soul, Tom Jones and Dusty Springfield, teaming up together on his 1970 television variety show with a cover of "I'm Gonna Make You Love Me", originally recorded by Diana Ross & the Supremes and The Temptations.

RANDOM SIGHTS + SOUNDS

Moses Sumney is an exciting voice in pop music that many may not have heard of but definitely need to hear. The twenty-eight year old queer artist, who was Los Angeles-raised and currently living in Ashville, N.C., first came on the scene after self-recording an EP, "Mid-City Island" in 2014. Sumney's intimate, experimental sound lead to him releasing his full-length debut, "Aromanticism" three years later. The album went on to be enthusiastically praised and ended up on several Best Albums of 2017 lists including the New York Times. Now Sumney has dropped his follow-up, "Græ", a twenty-song collection that jams together sounds and musical genres to create what he describes as "a concept album about grayness" or taking something bland and injecting it with bold color. The record explores the idea of not being afraid of the complexities that shapes one's identity and embracing that. Here is the video for the single, "Cut Me" which was also directed by the musician:



Take a look at a few inventive music videos for some recent songs I really like:







And finally as a fun way to remember that just because the parades were cancelled doesn't mean we still cannot celebrate LGBTQ pride. Katy Perry has taken her lovely ballad, "Daisies", which she released in the middle of the pandemic, and given it a throbbing dance remix called "Can't Cancel Pride". And the very pregnant singer has made a music video for the song, filled with her trademark whacky sense of humor and the colors of the rainbow flag exploding all over the screen.

NEW SOUNDS

HAYLEY WILLIAMS

One of my favorite songs of this new year is "Simmer" by Hayley Williams. And while this may be the singer's debut single, Williams is hardly a newcomer to the music scene. She helped form the band, Paramore in 2004 and remains the only original member of this pop-rock outfit. Some of Paramore's hits include "Misery Business", "Still In To You", "crushcrushcrush", "Decode" and "Ain't It Fun".  There is no official word that Paramore has broken-up but Williams knew it was time to a take a break from the years of writing and touring with the unit. She was ready to experiment a little further with her music and show other sides of herself lyrically. One example is with "Simmer" which touches on some specific forms of abuse she has experienced in her life. The thirty-one year old singer/songwriter will be first releasing an EP, "Petals For Armor I" on February 6th before the debut of her studio album, also called "Petals For Armor" in May. Check out the music videos for "Simmer" and the latest single, "Leave It Alone". Both clips (directed by Warren Fu) are connected with a dark and eerie imagery.





DOJA CAT

Like many aspiring musicians today, Doja Cat got her start by self-releasing her own music. After dropping a single, "So High" on Soundcloud back in 2013, this brought the then-eighteen year old some attention and lead to her being signed to RCA Records. The Los Angeles based singer, born Amala Diamini, released an EP, "Purrr!" the following year which helped raise her profile even further. In 2018, Doja Cat completed her debut album, "Amala" and her breakout single, "Juicy" featuring Tyga would appear on the deluxe edition of this record as well as her 2019 follow-up album, "Hot Pink". With her cartoon hyper-sexuality, an affinity to bubble-gum pink and a musical blend of aggressive hip-hop and sultry r&b, it would be easy to compare her to early Nicki Minaj. But Doja Cat certainly has her own distinctive style and flair that makes her standout all on her own. Her latest single, "Say So" is a great pop tune with a disco beat (aided by a sample of "Good Times" by Chic) that has gained in popularity due to it's use on the app, Tik Tok for several dance challenges.

The Pussycat Dolls began as a sexy burlesque troupe created by choreographer, Robin Antin before evolving in to a sexy pop music singing act. Lead by vocalist, Nicole Scherzinger, this girl group dominated the international charts beginning in 2005 and had many smash hits like "Don't Cha", "Stickwitu", "Buttons", "When I Grow Up" and "I Hate This Part". But after their brief burst of success (and selling over fifty million records worldwide), the Dolls came to a bitter end by 2010.  With the feeling that the spotlight was shinning too brightly only on Scherzinger, this created a rift among the other members of the group. However, time can heal many wounds and The Pussycat Dolls have reunited after ten years and released a new single. "React" features the return of most of the original Dolls (Melody Thornton decided to sit this out to focus on her solo career) and perfectly continues where this classic pop group left off. I think this may be one of the biggest hits of 2020. The music video for "React" has the Dolls looking like time has stood still and oozes with their trademark sensuality and slick dance moves:

MY FAVORITE MOMENTS IN MUSIC IN 2019

2019 seemed to highlight the further fragmenting of pop music with the growing emphasis on the song and less on the singer. In this Spotify generation, endless playlists filled with disconnected songs by a variety of artists have increasingly replaced a focused collection of work by a singer/songwriter with specific thoughts on life and love. Even the way music is created has moved back in time to the days when a factory of songwriters and producers put together a track and then find the right singer to fill in the rest. While it has become much more difficult for performers to maintain enduring careers after their initial burst of success, there were certainly some promising new artists who broke out and made fresh, memorable works last year who look like the real deal.

Here are a few more favorite songs that I didn't get chance to share previously throughout last year: