RANDOM SIGHTS + SOUNDS

Here is a round-up of new music I'm feeling right now: Khalid and Normani team-up again (following their 2018 hit release, "Love Lies") for the latest single off the deluxe edition of his third album, "Sincere"; the new dance-charged song from Olly Alexander of Years and Years; the quirky sounds of the indie band, Japanese Breakfast and the first single from their upcoming fourth album; Sky Ferreira has finally resurfaced with a contribution to the soundtrack of Nicole Kidman's erotic thriller, "Babygirl" with an electro-rocker, "Leash"; the teaming of two of the hottest artists in hip-hop right now, GloRilla and Sexyy Red; and Adam Lambert is currently on Broadway appearing in the latest revival of the musical, "Cabaret" as the MC and has released his version of the torch song, "I Don't Care" from the show.













And here is a tribute to some music artists we have recently lost:

Brenton Wood, the r&b vocalist and songwriter best known for "The Oogum Boogum Song" and "Gimme Little Sign", passed away on January 3rd. He was born Alfred Jesse Smith in Shreveport, LA but grew up in San Pedro, CA. After deciding to pursue a career in music, he changed his name to "Brenton Wood" and broke through with the novelty song, "Oogum Boogum" he had written in 1967. It cracked the top-forty on the US pop chart and reached number nineteen on the soul chart. Wood would have an even bigger hit later that year with the follow-up, "Gimme Little Sign", becoming a top-ten hit in four countries. These two singles would remain the major highlight of Wood's long career as he continued making music throughout the following years. At eighty-three, Wood had embarked on what was planned as a final tour last year but became ill in May, forcing him to put the rest of the tour on pause.

Alfa Anderson, one of the vocalist for the disco group, Chic and later an educator, has died on December 17th at the age of seventy-eight. She first got into the music business performing background vocals for a variety of artists. Fellow back-up musician and friend, Luther Vandross helped get Anderson work during the recording sessions of a new dance music group created by Nile Rodgers and Bernard Edwards. They both worked on the band's 1977 self-titled debut, "Chic" and are heard on the background of the hit singles, "Dance, Dance, Dance" and "Everybody Dance". Following one of the original lead singers, Norma Jean Wright leaving the group, Anderson was asked to replace her. Along with fellow lead vocalist, Luci Martin, Chic would go on to have many more hits, including the number-one disco smashes, "Le Freak" and "Good Times" and the top ten hit "I Want Your Love" which Anderson performed the lead vocals. Anderson also worked on other Rodgers and Edwards productions at the time for Sister Sledge and Diana Ross. When Chic came to an end in 1983, Anderson continued to work providing background vocals for other musicians during recordings and on tour.

And Sam Moore, one half of the dynamic soul duo, Sam & Dave, passed away on January 10th at the age of eighty-nine. With Dave Prater (who died in 1988), they performed together for about twenty years from 1961 to 1981 and considered one of the greatest live acts of the 1960s. They were best known for bringing the sounds of the black gospel church to pop music with their call-and-response records which included such hits as "Hold On, I'm Comin'", "I Thank You", "When Something Is Wrong with My Baby", "Wrap It Up" and "Soul Man". Moore and Prater met while each was performing individually working the gospel music circuit. After later singing together at a small nightclub, Sam & Dave officially became an r&b act. They signed with several record labels, finding moderate success but it wasn't until they met producer, Jerry Wexler of Atlantic Records that Sam & Dave would go to the next level. Recording with Stax Records (which Atlantic was distributing nationally), Sam & Dave broke through with "You Don't Know Like I Know" (written and produced by newcomers, Isaac Hayes and David Porter) which hit number seven on the US soul chart in 1966. "Hold On, I'm Comin'" reached number one on the soul chart and crossed over to the pop chart, making it to the top-twenty, that same year. The duo would make their final stage appearance together on New Year's Eve, 1981 in San Francisco. Moore went to work as a solo artist performing and recording throughout the following decades, recently appearing on Bruce Springsteen's 2022 soul covers album, "Only the Strong Survive", duetting on two songs.

NEW SOUNDS

KESHA

After spending almost ten years in a nasty, legal battle against her former producer, Łukasz "Dr. Luke" Gottwald, Kesha finally reached a settlement out of court last year. The thirty-seven year old pop singer also completed her contract of the three albums she still owed Gottwald's label, Kemosabe Records with "Gag Order" released last year. 

Now Kesha is completely a free woman, able to make music on her own terms. She has signed with new management and started her own record label, Kesha Records. And she has dropped a brand new single, "Joyride". This electro-pop track (written by Kesha, Madison Love and Zhone, who also produced the song) about self-fulfillment captures the vibe of her early sound yet feels very fresh and modern. There is an unofficial video out there of "Joyride" which is a collection of popular memes set to Kesha's song.

NORMANI

Ever since her band, Fifth Harmony had gone on an indefinite hiatus back in 2018, Normani has been working towards releasing her debut solo album. And she has been busy: working with dance DJ, Calvin Harris and releasing an EP together in 2018, having worldwide top-ten hits duetting with Sam Smith on "Dancing With a Stranger", with Khalid on "Love Lies" and "Wild Side" featuring Cardi B, and releasing a popular solo single, "Motivation" in 2019. But the album, despite several announcements over the past few years, had failed to materialize.

The wait is over and Normani's debut has finally been delivered. "Dopamine" is a vibrant collection of contemporary r&b, hip-hop and pop with an impressive assembly line of the hottest producers on board to help the singer with her vision. Normani has stated that this album is a representation of her evolution as an artist, creatively expressing everything she has gone through to get to this moment. Here are a few of my favorite tracks from "Dopamine":







And here is a collection of new sounds that I'm digging right now which includes a dance track by "Pose" actress, Michaela Jaé; the new song by rising alt-pop artist, Remi Wolf; the latest from musician-turned-actor (star of the Netflix series, "Young Royals"), Omar Rudberg and the unexpected yet intriguing musical pairing of alt-music goddess, Lana Del Rey and hip-hop musician, Quavo:

RANDOM SIGHTS + SOUNDS

Normani is back with some new music and she's got Cardi B along for the ride. "Wild Side" is a smooth r&b ballad, backed-up by a sample of the classic 1996 song, "One in a Million" by the legendary Aailyah, that gives off a 90's trip-hop vibe yet still feels very modern. The song is enhanced further by an astonishing music video. With an incredible array of sexy outfits, stunning wild imagery throughout the clip and slick, sensuous choreography by Sean Bankhead, the former Fifth Harmony member finally has the perfect showcase to display her bountiful skills as a musician and performer, certainly helping to enable the artist reach a new level of success.



Speaking of the 1990's, enjoy a sampling of a few hits by r&b girl groups from the era:







Here is a random collection of recent songs and videos I'm digging right now:









And we have Lil Nas X back with his latest song, "Industry Baby". Despite the controversy involving the video for "Montero (Call Me by Your Name)" and the promotional "Satan Shoes", Nas is not backing down and pushes the envelope even further with the video for this song. It is set in a men's prison with Nas being sentenced for being gay. What we get is a very queer version of "The Shawshank Redemption" including a semi-censored naked shower dancing scene (which is choreographed by Sean Bankhead) and a guest rap verse by Jack Harlow:

NEW SOUNDS

NORMANI

After this former Fifth Harmony member has been contributing her vocals to several successful singles for other artists, Normani has just dropped her first solo single, "Motivation". As the first taste of her long-awaited debut album, this track (co-written with Ariana Grande and producers, Max Martin and Ilya Salmanzadeh who produced this song) is taking us back with a slick, hip-hop flavored soul vibe that ruled the charts back in the '90's. And the music video for "Motivation" continues the homage with a tribute to the dance videos by some of the female artists who reigned in the 1990's.



MISSY ELLIOTT

Missy Elliott, one of the most unique and influential voices in hip-hop has finally returned with some new music. "Iconology" is the forty-eight year old rap legend's first collection of songs in fourteen years. With her long-time collaborator, Timbaland and Will Hendrix assisting her with production on this EP, Elliott has delivered four genre-bending songs that perfectly pick-up where she left off. The timing of this release is probably no coincidence since Elliott will be honored on Monday, August 26th with the Video Vanguard Award during the 2019 MTV Video Music Awards. Check out the ballad, "Why I Still Love You" and the video for "Throw it Back" which displays Elliott's eccentric style and visual innovation that helped earn her this award:

And we close with Ariana Grande who has somehow manged to become even bigger this year. The twenty-six year old pop sensation has yet another smash hit single with "boyfriend" that she has teamed up with Michael "Mikey" Foster and Charles "Scootie" Anderson of the production team and musical duo, Social House. This woozy pop-r&b jam is about not trying to label a relationship and redefine the concept of a romantic partnership. "boyfriend" is from Social House's debut extended play, "Everything Changed..." and the song could possibly be hitting close to home with rumors floating around that Grande is dating Foster.

DANCING WITH A STRANGER

Normani, a member of the girl-group. Fifth Harmony who are on an indefinite hiatus, has been actively moving on as a solo performer but has recently become the Queen of the duets. Following her successful collaborations with Khalid, 6lack, and Calvin Harris, the only twenty-two year old singer has recently teamed-up with another prominent pop artist; Sam Smith.

"Dancing With a Stranger" is a song Smith wrote while on tour supporting his last album, "The Thrill of It All" and by chance he was in the recording studio at the same time Normani was there. As a big fan of her band, Smith jumped at the chance to invite her to sing with him on the track. This sensual, mid-tempo dance tune is a perfect way to kick off the year.

MY FAVORITE MOMENTS IN MUSIC IN 2018

I think 2018 was a great year in music that offered something for everyone. While hip-hop and rap continued to dominate the music industry, I'm particularly thrilled that good old-fashioned soul music found it's way back on the airwaves and the charts. We had young, new artists like Ella Mai, H.E.R., Daniel Caesar and Jorja Smith who are reviving the r&b tradition and the return of classic performers like Toni Braxton, Tank, Mary J. Blige, Ledisi and Tamia whose new music was actually getting played on radio. This is one trend I hope continues in to 2019. And to close out 2018, here are a few songs that I loved last year that I didn't get a chance to share:

RANDOM SIGHTS + SOUNDS

Calvin Harris is on fire this year and seems like he's unable to make a wrong move. After some great collaborations with Dua Lipa and Sam Smith, the DJ turned producer has just dropped two new tracks with former Fifth Harmony member, Normani. One is "Checklist" that features WizKid and has a dance hall beat while "Slow Down" is a mid-tempo dance floor banger. They are both great songs and will definitely help give Normani an even bigger profile after her top-ten hit duet with Khalid with "Love Lies":





Here is some Chaka Khan, past and present. First, we go back to 1986 with "Love of a Lifetime", a song written and produced for her by Scritti Politti, a hot British band at the time who was best known for the hit, "Perfect Way". This song was a not a big success but I loved it. In the music video, what I find notable is Chaka's neon-colored hair which was long before it became trendy like today. And we have a new song, "Keep Reachin'", a funky jam for the recent Netflix documentary on Quincy Jones. Mark Ronson produced the track and together with Chaka's soaring vocals, it features the spirit of the legendary music maker.





Here is the newest single, "Money" by the hottest artist in hip-hop/rap right now, Cardi B and a couple of music videos that I find interesting:







Finally, we close with that '80's boy band, Duran Duran, who managed to deliver plenty of style and substance. When this British band first began, they were much closer aligned musically with the new-wave/new romantic scene before the 1982 album "Rio" and the music video for their smash, "Hungry Like The Wolf" helped pushed them in to the mainstream. While I liked their more commercial sound, I really enjoyed their early records. Let's look back on two of my favorite Duran Duran songs, "Planet Earth" and "Girls On Film" from 1981 with both of the music videos featuring adventurous and sensual imagery that would became a staple of the MTV generation: