This scene from the upcoming movie Burlseque has been previewed. As if I weren’t going crazy for this movie already, this scene gave me life. Christina Aguilera‘s character Ali Rose closes shop and belts out an Etta James classic Something’s Got a Hold on Me. With a voice like that, she’ll always be my favorite singer. I’m so anxious to go see this movie over and over again in theatres, with Xtina and Cher‘s big voices blaring from the big screen.

XXXO, the first single from M.I.A.‘s new album MAYA, has been out for a while. Now it finally has a visuals! This video is like a flashy MySpace profile that has come to life. She’s obviously trying to send a message about modern day technology and communication, as she always mentions in her interviews. With all the allusions to MySpace, Facebook, and YouTube, I wonder what point she is trying to make. I liked it!

I really like Chromeo‘s music. It’s always very upbeat, 80s inspired electrofunk. Their new single Don’t Turn The Lights On is no exception. I love it, and the video, as you can see, is different. Very silly, with a lot of eyeballs. I’m excited for their album Business Casual to drop in September. Check them out!

I’m sorry Justin (Beaver), but this was really funny! And I doubt it was supposed to feel good.

Kanye West is and will probably remain my favorite rapper. You may question his antics or disapprove of his attitude, but that’s not any of my business. I am always too impressed by his artistic genius to care about his outbursts (besides, Beyoncé did make one of the best videos of all time). From his music to his style, he is just the ultimate artist to me. This post, though, is about his videos! More specifically, his provocative video for his new single Power!

Watching this innovative music video is basically why I love him. I get into anyone who isn’t scared to reinvent themselves and their craft. This video is fresh in concept and very inspiring to an artist like myself. Instead of the typical music video, Power is a beautiful portrait - literally. It’s a painting that slowly zooms in all of the different subjects (Kanye included) to tell an abstract story. I don’t know if this concept has been done before, but Kanye definitely innovated and refreshed a genre that some say is dying. Kanye West is a trailblazer and he is here to stay, people. Stay mad.

I’m not dead, and neither this blog. I’ve just been trying to figure out which direction this is going to go. If I’m going to blog, it has to come from my heart and mean something to me. I love pop culture as much as the next Nick, but I don’t want my blog to get lost in being another celeb gossip site. It’s not that important to me.

Being unemployed this summer has given me a lot of time to myself to think and reflect. I’m going through a mental journey, trying to discover and understand myself a little better. My medium lately has been astrology, plus any other spiritual/metaphysical/mystical studies. Normally, I’m a little skeptical of such things, but the things I read about my sign and other people’s signs are so eerily accurate. The more I learn, the more I want to know. And of course, like a true Scorpio, I become obsessed until it’s time to move on to the next phase of my life.

Scorpios are all about feelings, passion, control, mystery, and transformation. I think those traits combined are what make me want to blog. Being so secretive and having such intense emotions is not always a good combination. This is the place that allows me to express myself in a way I can control. I can say as little or as much as I want about anything I find interesting or not interesting.

I ask myself sometimes why I do this? Out of everyone that has a blog, what makes mine any different or any better? I’m not trying to be a Perez Hilton. I’m not trying to act as if my opinion is law. I’m not trying to judge pop culture icons or play God. I want to share with the world what makes me who I am. What I love and hate, and why. Whether or not any of you care, I know that is the only thing that will make my blog 100% unique. More importantly, getting stuff from out of my head and onto this blog helps me understand myself. My head gets a little overcrowded with thoughts and feelings, and blogging is an outlet for me. It took me a while this summer to come to that conclusion and now I can start blogging again.

With that said, Nicks are still for Kids!

I don’t know how well a ballad in the summertime will fare on the Billboard charts, but You Lost Me is one of my favorites from Bionic. It’s a risk, especially considering her album’s not selling so well so far, but I support risks as long as the product is good. Christina Aguilera (with the help of Sia) delivered a gut-wrenching ballad, and director Anthony Mandler helped bring it to life in this video. It’s a very subtle video, with many effects that play upon the unraveling of a relationship. Despite the sometimes boring simplicity, I love the visuals Mandler uses in his videos, almost like watercolors. This video is no exception. It tells a story without being over the top, like Xtina often times is. I like it.

Shut the door
My knees are growing weak
And could buckle
Under the domineering wind

Close the blinds
So the moon can’t see me
Trying to keep old tides at bay
Half drowned in the current

There’s a storm brewing

I’m splashing
In bullets of rain
Dancing alone in the eye of the storm
Dare you to join me

Cling to safety
As you attempt to dive
With one foot in into a bottomless pool
The other foot running away

There’s a storm brewing
But I’m going to remain
In the midst of all I know
I’m not able to grasp everything I love
Because I still can’t let go
Of anything I hate

Now there’s just too much to carry
But I can’t let you think of me
In ways that I cannot control
Oh, the lengths I’ll go
To ensure nobody knows
A forecast certain of record lows

There’s a storm brewing
Quiet enough to know my name
Loud enough to mask the ruin
Strong enough to cause this pain

The infamous Lady Gaga has got the girls talking again. This time as Jo Calderone, an alter-ego of sorts. She recently did a photoshoot for Vogue Hommes Japan dressed as a man. Not surprisingly, she pulls off being a man really well. I didn’t know it was her until I read about it. Not sure if this will be any indication of the *imagery* or *theme* from her upcoming album, or if she just felt a little cocky that day.

What do you think? I kind of love it.

I’ve been a big fan of Fefe Dobson from the beginning. I was intrigued because she was a (half) black girl doing music that wasn’t R&B. Her music and style resonated with me at a young age, because I felt like rebelling against everything that was considered to be normal. Not saying Fefe was groundbreaking, but she was the only black girl on TV doing rock music at the time.

In 2003, her self-titled debut album was released. It was lighthearted and sometimes angsty teenage pop/rock. I loved it. She didn’t make a big splash, but a lot of people remembered her because she stood out. In 2006, her second album was going to be released and show off a mature, edgier side of Fefe (which Rihanna ended up stealing). Unfortunately, Sunday Love was shelved and she was let go by her record company. I was so disappointed, but the album finally leaked. I guess the biggest disappointment was that the album was actually really good, and showed a lot of growth from the first album.

Fefe didn’t give up, though. She continued working on her music independently. Her music has been featured on a lot of commercials and ads. Her persistence finally paid off when she was finally resigned to her old label. Her new album Joy is set to be released in August.

Ghost is the newest single from Fefe. It’s more dance-pop driven than her older work, and it sounds like it could fit in flawlessly with the stuff that they play on the radio nowadays. I hope Fefe finally gets recognition with this album, but if not, I just hope the album’s good.