MY TOP TEN Artists and Songs To Listen To!

Hello! This week I would like to talk about some great songs and artists to listen to this year! This is based entirely on my opinion and most of the songs are newly released or just my all-time favorites! Also, some of the songs and artists I will be listing I have blogged about before! Be sure to look at my other posts for more information on them (if the artist or song has a link then I linked my blog post about that). I will put some of the videos of the songs at the end! Here are my top ten artists and songs(not in any order):

Top Ten Artists

1. Ed Sheeran
2. Maroon 5
3. Beyonce
4. Bruno Mars
5. Little Mix
6. One Republic
7. Train
8. One Direction
9. Taylor Swift
10. Rihanna

      

These are a few of my all-time favorite artists :) Their songs are AMAZING so I suggest you listen to them!

Top Ten Songs

1. Bruno Mars- When I Was Your Man
2. Maroon 5- Daylight 
3. P!nk Ft. Nate Ruess- Just Give Me A Reason
4. Demi Lovato- Heart Attack
5. Rihanna- Stay
6. Little Mix- Wings
7. One Direction- Little Things
8. Snow Patrol- Chasing Cars
9. Ed Sheeran- Lego House
10. Jason Mraz- I Won't Give Up

These ten songs I love listening to when I feel like singing along to something or when I'm reading I have it in the background! These songs I am absolutely in love with at the moment and are my favorites :)

 What do you guys think? You all should really go and check out these artists AND songs afterwards! Now here below are music videos for some songs! Thank you for reading this weeks' post! -Johanne

 

 

Stay- Rihanna Ft. Mikky Ekko

Stay is a song by the amazing Rihanna from her seventh album, Unapologetic. This song features artist Mikky Ekko, and was released as the second single of Unapologetic on January 7th, 2013. Rihanna, along with Mikky Ekko and Justin Parker, wrote the song. The song received mostly positive reviews by critics and charted in many countries worldwide, upon its release. Some places it reached number one in are Canada, Bulgaria, Denmark, and Israel. It also reached top five in countries including France, the UK, and Australia.

In my opinion, this is a really great song. Its catchy, slow, and has a really deep meaning to it. The lyrics revolve around 'failing to resist true love'. Also, when Rihanna sings, round and round and round we go, now tell me now tell me now you know...not really sure how to feel about it, something in the way you move. Makes me feel like I can't live without you, it takes me all the way , she makes a plea to her lover. This is overall an amazing song. So, I suggest you listen to it and really look at the lyrics to find the deep meaning to it. Here is the music video at the bottom. Comment below what you guys think! :) ~Johanne

Just Give Me A Reason- P!nk Ft. Nate Ruess

Hello! This week I would like to talk about the song by the amazing P!nk(Pink), Just Give Me A Reason. This song also features the group Fun’s lead singer, Nate Ruess. This is the third single in her sixth studio album, Truth About Love, which was released last year. The song was released as a single on February 2013. Just Give Me A Reason charted in many places around the world because of its strong digital sales. A music video was also filmed, and Pink confirmed that on an interview in France. Here is the music video below:

This song was written by Pink and Nate and was originally supposed to be just Pink singing it herself, but during their writing session she realised that she needed someone else to sing with her so she asked Nate, and now it is a duet song! The whole meaning behind the song is that the person wants to hold onto his/her relationship, even though it seems to be breaking down. Many critics thought positively of the song including Jody Rosen from The Rolling Stone. She said the the song is the best track in the album, “in which Pink dials back the drama, letting the melody and sentiments do their work, and singing, for once, instead of yowling.”

What do you guys think of the song, Just Give Me A Reason? COMMENT BELOW! Thank you for reading this week’s post! -Johanne :)

Demi Lovato~ Heart Attack!

Demi Lovato's latest song, Heart Attack, was released on February 24, 2013, and is going to be in her 4th studio album, Demi, which comes out May 14th of this year! This song was written by Demi herself, Mitch Allen, Jason Evigen, Nikki Williams, and Sean Douglas. This song was first premiered February 24th via international streaming after it was leaked. On February 26th Amazon MP3 store released the song andother major retailers began selling it on March 5th. Many song critics praised Demi's mature vocal range, as well as the songs production. Her vocal range that has matured has been compared to artist Kelly Clarkson. Heart Attack holds the second 'best-selling first-week sales' figure of 2013 after selling over 215,000 units. It is right behind the song Suit and Tie by Justin Timberlake. Here is the official lyric video of Demi's song:

What do you guys think? I personally really like this song. Heart Attack is a song that 'employs cardiac arrest as a metaphor for lovesickness'. Her voice is also fantastic in the song. The way she reaches all those high notes is truly incredible. Nikki Williams, one of the writers, describes the song as a song that talks about a girl who's been through heart break, and is scared to fall again after feeling so 'vulnerable and fragile'. COMMENT BELOW what you guys think of the song! :) -johanne

Little Mix!

From left-right: Perrie, Jade, Jesy, and Leigh-Anne

Little Mix.... a group of four british girls. Jade Thirlwall, Jesy Nelson, Leigh-Anne Pinnock, and Perrie Edwards. They were formed in the eighth series of the UK reality show, The X Factor (2011). Each lady auditioned as solo artists, but failed to pass bootcamp, so the judges decided to give them a second chance! Jesy and Perrie were put in the group, Faux Pas, with 2 other people and Leigh-Anne and Jade were put in the group Orion with one other person. A later descision was made and two members from each group were put into one group. Their first group name was named Rhythmix but it was changed to Little Mix once they started the live shows. The girls were the first ever group to win the show!


After the X Factor, Little Mix was signed to the UK record label, Syco Records and was later signed to Columbia Records, a U.S record label January 2013. On November 2012, the girls released their first debut album DNA. The album included Wings, their debut single that reached number one in the UK charts and the song, DNA. In March 2013, Little Mix revealed that their second album would have more R&B sound. Also, their single, How Ya Doin'? will feature artist Missy Elliot. Lastly, they announced that they would release many different merchandise and an autobiography in the future!

What do you guys think of Little Mix?? -Johanne

The Beatles

Top Left: John Lennon
Top Right: Paul McCartney
Bottom Left: George Harrison
Bottom Right: Ringo Starr

The Beatles were an English rock band formed in the 60's in Liverpool. The group, which lineup was best known to be John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison, and Ringo Starr, became the most successful  in the 'rock music era'. They also were the most critically acclaimed, which meant many professionals thought they were great. The Beatles also incorporated different genres in their music, including some classical and pop ballads. The bands reputation of playing clubs in Liverpool and Hamburg built in over a three-year period in the 1960's. It was in late 1962 where their popularity grew when they released their hit, Love Me Do. The groups nickname was the 'Fab Four'.

Early 1964, they become international super stars and started the 'British Invasion' in the U.S. After 1965, the Beatles produced material that many critics would agree as 'their finest material' which included many hit albums. In 1970, the band broke up and each of them enjoyed their solo careers. Unfortunately, John Lennon was shot and killed December 1980 and George Harrison died of lung cancer in 2001. Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr are still here enjoying their successful music careers. According to Time Magazine, the Beatles are the best selling band in history. 

I personally think the Beatles are really cool and I love their music. Some of my favorite songs are Let it Be and Hey Jude. I hope you guys liked this post! What are your opinions on this band? -Johanne

Bruno Mars: When I Was Your Man

Hello! This week's 'Song of the Week' is................ When I Was Your Man by Bruno Mars! This song by the American singer/songwriter is included in his latest album, Unorthodox Jukebox. The album was released in 2012 but the single was released as a single on January 2013. This song was written by Bruno himself, Philip Lawrence, Ari Levine, and Andrew Wyatt. Below is the music video for When I Was Your Man! 

I, myself, really like the song. I think that the meaning is basically that he lets this special girl go and really regrets it. This song is saying that he hopes the girl's new man would treat her right, and treat her better than he could ever do. The music video is very cool, too. As you saw from the video above, its like one of the 'old' types of films, it looks really vintage and I think it goes great with this song. It is also very simple. Bruno is just playing the piano while singing.

So, what did you guys think of the song, and the video?? COMMENT BELOW! -Johanne

Alicia Keys vs Beyonce

Hello! So, I'm going to do another versus! This time, its Alicia Keys vs Beyonce. Both ladies are very talented and are very big artists, but its up to YOU to decide which do you think is better!

Beyoncé
On September 4, 1981, Beyoncé Giselle Knowles-Carter was born. Today, she's known as an R&B, soul, pop, and hip-hop artist. She is a singer-songwriter, dancer, and actress born and raised in Houston, Texas. As a child she enrolled in performing arts schools and joined singing and dancing competitions. In the 1900's Beyonce was the lead singer of the girl group Destiny's Child. Due to some problems, the group decided to take a break from Destiny's Child so they could pursue solo careers. As a solo artist, Beyonce's four studio albums has given her awards such as Grammy's and has reached the top of the charts! As of today, she is married to Jay-Z with a child. Also, her group, Destiny's Child, released the album, "Love Songs" January of this year which is full of romantic-themed songs from their previous albums. To cover her future songwriting and her upcoming albums, Beyonce signed with Warner/Chappell Music.


Alicia Keys
Alicia Augello Cook was born January 25, 1981 in Manhattan, New York City. She is a singer-songwriter and actress, professionally known as 'Alicia Keys'. At 12 years old, Alicia enrolled in The Professional Performing Arts School and when she was 14 she began writing songs. Her career began when she met Jeff Robinson at an after-school program, the man who is her long-term manager and the one who introduced her to Arista Records, one of the recording labels she is currently signed to. She is also signed by record labels like Columbia Records. Alicia has also made many guest appearances on television series. One of her first appearances was on the show "Charmed". Today Alicia released her 5th studio album "Girl On Fire" November 27, 2012, and she is married with a child also.


Comparison
Now that we have most of the background information on these two phenomenal artists, I made a comparison of the two! Below you will be able to see the comparison based on their success for Alicia Keys and Beyonce.

Beyonce’s Success	Alicia’s Success
Over 7 Million followers on Twitter	Almost 12 million followers on Twitter
4 studio albums	4 studio albums
Has sold over 13 million albums in the US alone and over 118 million records worldwide	Has sold over 30 million albums and 35 million singles worldwide
1997-present: Years active as an artist	1996-present: Years active as an artist
Achievements: 17 Grammy Awards, 12 Video Music Awards (VMA), and a star on the Hollywood Walk Of Fame	Achievements: 9 Grammy awards, 11 Billboard Music Awards, and 3 American Music Awards

Top Tens!
Now, I made a list of top ten songs from each artist! This information is from The Top Tens by the way :) Below you can click on the title and there is a Youtube link to the song!

Beyonce:                                                                             Alicia Keys:
1. Halo                                                                                1. Fallin'
2. Irreplaceable                                                                 2. No One
3. Single Ladies (Put a Ring on it)                                 3. Try Sleeping With A Broken Heart
4. Crazy In Love                                                                4 .Un-thinkable (I'm Ready)
5. Best Thing I Never Had                                               5. Butterflyz
6. If I Were A Boy                                                             6. Superwoman
7. Sweet Dreams                                                              7. Goodbye
8. Listen                                                                             8. Like You'll Never See Me Again
9. Love On Top                                                               9. Girl On Fire
10. Broken-Hearted Girl                                               10. A Place Of My Own


Summary
So, what did you guys think? Have you changed your minds about these two ladies, or are your opinions still the same? I myself am very fond of Beyonce. She is AMAZING. As you can see from above, she is a very famous person and many people like her. And her voice is absolutely incredible! Now, it is time for you guys to decide on who is better. Alicia Keys.... or Beyonce?! Comment Below!  -Johanne
            

One Direction vs The Wanted: Which Do You Prefer?!

There has been a little feud between One Direction fans and The Wanted fans. Which is better? Well, both bands are English/Irish. The Wanted and One Direction are also both pop boybands. I decided to write this post to help you make a decision about the two bands.

One Direction
One Direction. A group of five boys named Zayn Malik(20), Niall Horan(19), Liam Payne(19), Louis Tomlinson(21), and Harry Styles(19). Each of the boys auditioned for the X Factor UK 2010 but did not make it past bootcamp. Simon Cowell and Nicole Scherzinger decided that they couldn’t be let go so they were put together as a band by the two judges. That is how One Direction was formed. The boys made it past judge’s house and to the live shows where they won third place, with Rebecca Ferguson second and Matt Cardle the winner. But, they did not stop there. They were signed by Simon Cowell into the Syco Record Label. One Direction released their hit single What Makes You Beautiful in September 2011 which became a hit single at the top of the UK charts. Then, they became huge in the US, after becoming signed by Columbia Records in November 2011. One Direction has sold over 14 million albums and 8 million singles in the United States ALONE. As of now they are a huge success all across the globe with two debut albums and many awards such as the 2011 and 2012 BRIT award and three VMA awards.

The Wanted
The Wanted are slightly different than One Direction. These five guys, Nathan Sykes(19), Max George(24), Tom Parker(24), Jay McGuiness(22), and Siva Kaneswaren(24) were formed in 2009 during Massive Auditions held by Jayne Collins, who was responsible for putting together a UK girl group The Saturdays. After they began their first album and co-wrote thirteen of the songs. Some of their singles made it to the UK charts. When they released their debut single Glad You Came in the US in early 2012, it went to number three on the Billboard Hot 100. They currently have two studio albums and is currently working on their third. Earlier this month, they also announced that they are going to start their own TV show on E! called, “The Wanted Life” which will air June 2013.

Comparison: Their Success
    As you can see in the last two paragraphs, both One Direction and The Wanted are successful. But, we should compare their success, just to see which is more successful. Below is a chart that shows their similarities and differences based on their success.

One Direction Success	The Wanted Success
10.2 million followers on Twitter (as of 2/27/13)	1.8 million followers on Twitter (as of 2/27/13)
2010-present	2009-present
Two albums- “Up All Night” and “Take Me Home	Two Albums- “The Wanted” and “Battleground”
Over 1.2 BILLION views on Youtube	About 201 million views on Youtube
Received awards such as three ‘moonmen’ (VMA 2012), and Brit’s ‘Best British Single’ (2012), ‘Global Success’ (2013)	Received BBC Radio 1 Teen Award(2012) for ‘Best British Music Act’, and People’s Choice Award 2012 for ‘Favorite Breakout Artist’

Top Five Songs!
Now I would like to share with you my top five favorite songs from each band. Just click on the song title and it will direct you to the song!

One Direction                                           The Wanted

1. Little Things                                                            1.  I Found You
2. Rock Me                                                                 2. Glad You Came
3. Moments                                                                3. Chasing The Sun
4. Kiss You                                                            4. Warzone
5. One Thing                                                               5. Heart Vacancy

Summary
So, based on my post, what do you think? I personally think One Direction is a lot better because they are huge worldwide and I really like their music. Now, it is time for you to decide! Which band do you prefer, One Direction or The Wanted? Take the poll below or comment! -Johanne

Which Boy-band Do YOU Prefer?

Song Of The Week :)

Hello! This week I am going to talk about a Taylor Swift song(again!) This time, I wanted to talk about the song I Knew You Were Trouble. This song was co-written by Taylor herself, Max Martin, and Shellback. Its from her fourth studio album, RED, and was released on October 9th, 2012 as her third single from the album. There were a lot of positive reviews for this single, too. I Knew You Were Trouble debuted at number three on the Billboard Hot 100, and also within the first week sold 416,000 copies. Below is the music video for the song:

I Knew You Were Trouble is one of Taylor Swift's favorite songs off her latest album. On Good Morning America, she said this was "one (of the singer's) favorite songs on the album because it sounds just as chaotic as the feeling was when I wrote it. The song is about being frustrated with yourself because here you are heart-broken and you knew when you first saw that person you saw all these red flags and you just went for it anyway, so shame on me."  In an interview with MTV, she further explained that the song told the story of a good girl falling for the bad boy and continues about a "toxic relationship" between them, which resulted in break-up. I personally like this song because it is very catchy and has a real meaning to it, like most of Taylor's songs.

Thank you for reading this week's post! What do you think about the song? Comment below!!! -Johanne

Red Nose Day!

Hello! This week I would like to talk about Red Nose Day. Red Nose Day is a huge fundraising event which raises money to help end extreme poverty and support vulnerable, disadvantaged people across Africa and the UK. British/Irish boy band One Direction has teamed up with this fundraiser and released a single to help raise money for this amazing charity. The single is a cover of Blondie's song, One Way Or Another. In an M Magazine interview, Niall Horan, a member of the band, said, “We are really excited to be part of Red Nose Day this year. We recorded Blondie’s One Way or Another and we really want the song to raise lots of money and for people to show their support by going out and buying themselves a copy.” Louis Tomlinson, another member, also said,  “Getting the chance to perform Blondie’s song will be incredible. We’re so excited! Red Nose Day is a great excuse to have a lot of fun and to raise money, please get involved.” This single is released on iTunes on February 18th here in the US and in other countries but February 17th in the UK. Below you can listen to the single that was played for the first time on the UK radio BBC Radio 1:

Also, while working with Red Nose Day, the boys of One Direction were able to visit Accra, Ghana to see all of those homeless and sick children there and help out. The boys spent two days in the Ghanaian capital. There, they visited a hospital and spoke to many families with sick children. Many children there suffered with pneumonia and other diseases. Each year, about 1.7 million children die from vaccine-preventable diseases all around the world. That means one child dies every 20 seconds. This whole experience, according to Harry, Niall, Liam, Zayn, and Louis, has changed there lives. All of the proceeds from the 

charity single will go to the charity and help protect the babies. Here are a few pictures of One Direction in Ghana.

Thank you for reading this week's post an I hope it will make you want to help raise money! You can pre-order the single on iTunes at: 1D Red Nose Day Single.... -Johanne(:

Song Of The Week (4)

Hello...... This week I want to talk about the song, Someone Like You by Adele. This song by the English singer-songwriter was written by herself and Dan Wilson for her album, 21. This was her second single of the album. It was released on January 24th, 2011 in the United Kingdom and August 9th here in the United States. Someone Like You became Adele's first number one single in the UK after her performance of the song at the 2011 BRIT Awards. This song stayed at the top of the UK charts for five weeks! It also topped charts in Ireland, New Zealand, Australia, Brazil, Italy, Farnce, and so many more! Adele performed Someone Like You in many awards shows and talk shows including the 2011 MTV Video Music Awards, Jimmy Kimmel Live, and The Ellen DeGeneres Show. The music video of this song was recorded in Paris. Here it is below:


Someone Like You was inspired by Adele's break-up with a 30 year old man that she dated for 18 months. She really believed that they were going to get married. He was engaged to someone else a few months after they split.  "We were so intense I thought we would get married. But that was something he never wanted ...So when I found out he does want that with someone else, it was just the horrible-est feeling ever. But after I wrote it, I felt more at peace. It set me free ... I didn't think it would resonate ... with the world! I'm never gonna write a song like that again. I think that's the song I'll be known for." Another thing she said about the inspiration of the song was:  "I can imagine being about 40 and looking for him again, only to turn up and find that he's settled with a beautiful wife and beautiful kids and he's completely happy... and I'm still on my own. The song's about that and I'm scared at the thought of that." 

I think this is a very sad song with a really, really deep meaning but its an amazing song that you should listen to! Thank you for reading! -Johanne(:

Song Of The Week!!!!!

Yay! This week I want to do another song! Haha. So, I want to do the song Little Things by One Direction. This song by the British/Irish boyband was released November 2012 as their second single in their latest album, Take Me Home. Ed Sheeran, a british songwriter/artist co-wrote this song with Fiona Bevan when he was 17! He apparently lost it, found it recently, and gave it to the boys. This track became One Direction's second #1 hit single in the UK, while it was top ten in Ireland, New Zealand, and Australia.

Little Things is a very slow song. Ed Sheeran said that this song "is about the best things about someone, kind of like the things you wouldn't expect." You would expect this song to be a love song because 17 year old Ed wrote a lot about love, and when he was 17, he had a girlfriend who inspired most of his songs. In my opinion I love Little Things mainly because of its meaning. It makes many girls feel better about themselves when the boys sing "I'm in love with you, and all your little things." It also shows many flaws that a lot of young girls have. It is just a really great song with a great tune, written by an amazingly great person ;)
Here is the video:

What do you think of this song? COMMENT below! Thank you for reading this week's post! -Johanne

Info from: Little Things

Justin Bieber

Justin Drew Bieber was born March 1st, 1994 in Stratford, Ontario, Canada. He is the son of Jeremy Jack Bieber and Patricia 'Patte' Mallette He is a Canadian Pop musician that was discovered in 2008 on Youtube by Scott 'Scooter' Braun, an american talent manager. He  is actually now Bieber's manager. Scooter arranged for Justin to meet Usher and after, he was singed to the Raymund Braun Media Group. Later, recording executive L.A Reid offered him a contract to Island Records.

His debut extended play. My World was released November 2009 with seven tracks.It was certified platnimum in the US. His first studio album, My World 2.0, was released March 2010. He also has an acoustic album for that, one for his movie Never Say Never, a christmas album, and his latest on Believe which was released late 2012. Justin Bieber is a very famous artist with many records, awards, and lots of dedicated 'Beliebers'.

Song of the Week

Hello! This week I chose the song I Almost Do by Taylor Swift. This song is a part of her latest album, RED. It was written by herself and produced by Nathan Chapman, her long time collaborator. The genre of this song is country. Also, it is the 7th song in her album and the length is 4:05. This song has received many positive reviews from music critics and has peeked at numbers 65 and 50 in charts in the US and Canada.


I Almost Do has a pretty deep meaning. The lyrics talk about a girl missing her old lover and expressing her feelings of missing him. I think that the girl and the boy probably had a pretty bad break up because the lyrics say, 'I bet you think I either moved on or hate you cause' each time you reach out there's no reply. I bet it never, ever occurred to you that I can't say hello to you, and risk another goodbye' Also she talks about how she wishes she could call him or run to him. But, she never does. I Almost Do basically means that she really misses this old lover and really wants to speak to him again, but she doesn't; she almost does. I really like this song personally because of the really deep meaning and the music is slow and catchy. LISTEN TO IT BELOW:

THANK YOU for reading this weeks blog post! What do you think of this song? Comment below! -Johanne

Demi Lovato!

     Demetria Devonne 'Demi' Lovato was born August 21st, 1992. She is an american singer/songwriter, musician, actress, and also an anti-bullying spokesperson. She was born in Albuquerque, New Mexico but was raised in Dallas, Texas. She has an older sister named Dallas Lovato and a younger half sister, Madison de la Garza, from her mom's remarriage. Demi starred in Barney and Friends when she was little before starring in a big movie, Camp Rock in 2008. In 2009, she got her own television show, Sonny With A Chance and also starred in another movie with her close friend Selena Gomez, Princess Protection Program.


     Demi was not just an actress, but also a musician. Don't Forget, Lovato's first album, was released September 23rd, 2008 and debuted at number two on the Billboard 200. It sold 89,000 copies the first week! Her second album, Here We Go Again, was released July 21st, 2009. This album was debuted at number one on the Billboard 200 and sold over 108,000 copies the first week! Her third album released on September 20th, 2011 and this one debuted at number four on the Billboard 200. This album is called Unbroken. Apparently she is working on her fourth studio album at the moment.

     In 2012 she was a judge on the second season of the X-Factor USA. I personally like Demi Lovato because she inspires many girls to be themselves and to be independent. She was bullied a lot through her school years and has had a lot of problems because of that but she stays strong. That really inspires many young girls. In my opinion she is a very talented and amazing girl! Here is a video of her in Ellen speaking about bullying!

Thank you for reading this week's blog post! What are your opinions on Demi Lovato? ~Johanne(: