Miley Cyrus has certainly caused a little whiplash with her drastic image shifts. She was introduced as the cute "Hannah Montana" character then becoming a more natural, sweet country-rock princess before shocking everyone as a raunchy, pot-smoking provocateur. Now the twenty-four year old singer has evolved once again. With a semi fresh-scrubbed, drug-free persona and leaving hip-hop far behind, Cyrus has returned to her pop-rock roots with a new song, "Malibu". Inspired by a reconnection with her former fiance, actor Liam Hemsworth, the guitar-driven song is about her falling in love again. I really like this and find "Malibu" a refreshing sound for pop radio.
Here are some recent music videos of follow-up songs from artists with new albums on the horizon:
I had mentioned earlier of TLC releasing new music but there is another female r&b group from the '90's also making a comeback. En Vogue, who brought us such hits like "Hold On", "My Lovin' (You're Never Gonna Get It)" and "Don't Let Go (Love)". are back with a new single, "I'm Good". Now down to a trio which includes original members, Terry Ellis and Cindy Herron along with Rhona Bennett, the song may not be as memorable as when they were riding high on the charts but it features a classic soul vibe and their perfect harmonies. En Vogue's seventh studio album, "Electric Cafe", which feature production assistance from Raphael Saadiq and the group's original founders and producers, Denzil Foster and Thomas McElroy, is due out later this year.
Two British alt-soul vocalist are making their long-awaited return to the music scene. First, we have Laura Mvula, who dazzled us with her 2013 debut album, "Sing To The Moon", back with the follow-up release, "The Dreaming Room". Following the first single, "Overcome" that featured Nile Rodgers, the latest is "Phenomenal Woman" which is inspired by the poem by the late, great Maya Angelou. I love the video for the song which is a colorful, dance-filled celebration of women filmed in Cape Town, South Africa:
It's been about five years since we last heard from Corinne Bailey Rae. After having to cope with the tragic loss of her musician husband, Jason Rae in 2008, the thirty-seven year old singer found love again with another musician, Steve Brown whom she married in 2013. That is reflected on her third album, "The Heart Speaks in Whispers" which finds Rae (who co-wrote and produced much of the album with Brown) in a more upbeat, groove-oriented vibe than on her last release, "The Sea" in 2010. There are certainly moving songs about love to be found here as well. Check out this great video for the single, "Green Aphrodisiac" which features the singer performing interpretive dance with two impressive male dancers. Now, I'm not sure if Rae is actually singing about weed here but have a listen and see what you think:
Sean Combs has taken back the name "Puff Daddy" for his upcoming "Bad Boy Family Reunion" tour. It reunites many of the artists that recorded on Combs' Bad Boy label in the '90's all on one stage. Expect to see such rap and hip-hop greats like Mase, Faith Evans, Mario Winans, 112, Total and Lil' Kim in addition to a musical tribute to the legendary Notorious B.I.G.
This celebration of the 20th anniversary of Bad Boy Entertainment will begin in late August and run through October. In case you may have forgotten, here are just a few of the hits made by some of these performers:
Finally here is our Miss Janet with the last video from her sensational album, "Unbreakable" that was released shortly before she took some take off to have a child. "Dammn Baby" is classic Janet Jackson as she shows the world she's one hot mama that still got the moves:
