American Music Awards Recap

Well, last night the AMA's were on, and last blog post I predicted several winners. The results turned out pretty good, except for the two biggest awards. I missed Artist Of The Year and Breakthrough Artist. But hey, who could predict those shocker results. Taylor Swift beat Michael Jackson for Artist Of The Year and Gloriana (Who?) beat Lady GaGa For Breakthrough Artist. This just shows the intensity of Taylor Swift's following. Eight out of ten isn't that bad.

As for the performances, most of them were... questionable. The show started with a performance by Janet Jackson. She sang a medley of her songs, not Michael's as I previously stated. I was incorrectly informed. The show then continued with Daughtry, Shakira, etc. There were several acts that caught my attention, some for the wrong reasons. My favorites were Kelly Clarkson, Green Day, and Alicia Keys (without Jay-Z). My least favorite was Rihanna. Her performance was a mess. I couldn't tell what she was saying at all. Many of the acts were very suggestive, such as Shakira and Adam Lambert. Lady GaGa also took her weird factor to a new level. She wore a flesh colored bodysuit with bone-like coverings.

The AMA's were overall decent. The problem is there were too many performers that focused on dancing and strange on stage antics. I guess some people prefer that and call it "entertainment". Still, I would prefer the artists doing less of a stage show and more of a concert.

American Music Awards Predictions

Tomorrow night is the evening of the 2009 American Music Awards. The American Music Awards, or AMA's for short, started in 1974. While not nearly as popular as the Grammy Awards, they are still televised every year. This year, to honor Michael Jackson, Janet Jackson will perform an opening medley of his songs. Michael Jackson is also nominated for many of the top awards of the night. I thought it might be interesting to predict winners of each major award, and see how accurate I am.

These four categories seem to be the most significant besides Breakthrough Artist and Artist Of The Year. I predict Michael Jackson will win everything that he's nominated for.

Favorite Pop/Rock Male Artist: Michael Jackson

Favorite Pop/Rock Female Artist: Taylor Swift

Favorite Pop/Rock Band, Duo, Or Group: The Black Eyed Peas

Favorite Pop/Rock Album: Number Ones - Michael Jackson

Here are four more random categories...

Favorite Country Female Artist: Taylor Swift

Favorite Alternative Rock Artist: Green Day
Favorite Soul/R&B Female Artist: Beyonce

Favorite Rap/Hip-Hop Male Artist: Jay-Z

and finally, the two most important awards...

Artist Of The Year: Michael Jackson

Breakthrough Artist: Lady GaGa

Overall, I think Michael Jackson and Taylor Swift will take most of the awards. I also think that, although they have several nominations, Kings Of Leon will leave the show empty handed. We'll see the results tomorrow night.

La Roux

Here's one of my latest finds. La Roux is an English electropop duo led by singer Elly Jackson. English pop music has always different greatly from American pop, but I'll take La Roux over Lady GaGa any day. Their music reminds me of the 80's. They sound similar to Depeche Mode, Eurythmics, and maybe even Prince. The music consists of incredibly catchy beats and synths, while Jackson sings even catchier melodies. I've listened to three of their songs, Tigerlily, Bulletproof, and a remix of In For The Kill. Tigerlily is my favorite of the three, with Bulletproof as a close second. While I've never heard the original version of In For The Kill, the remix (Heartbreak Remix) is a little to long for my liking. I could definitely see Bulletproof becoming a Top 40 hit. I'm actually surprised it isn't already. I guess mainstream radio in the US isn't quite as friendly to electronic and dance music as Europe is. If you like upbeat pop music with a dance/electronic twist, then check out La Roux.

Greatest Hits

Have you ever discovered a new band and thought to yourself, "How do I not have any of their music?"  But what happens when the band has over five albums with their hit singles spread across each record?  This is where a greatest hit album or singles collection comes in.  Many well known artists releases these.  Some of the most recent being Fall Out Boy, Britney Spears, and Madonna.  They are usually considered the artists "very best".  The question is, do you buy it.  I always have a problem with this decision.  When I acquire a sudden interest in a band, I face the dilemma.  The problem is, what if I do buy this compilation but then want more of their music.  I'll already have bits and pieces of their catalogue, causing me to buy songs that I previously bought.  I don't want to buy the same song twice.  With this being said, I do own several "Greatest Hits" albums; artists such as Nirvana, The Ramones, and The Clash.  I guess the answer to the question is another question.  "How much do you really like their music?".  Can you live without all of their music, or do you need all of it?

Rah Rah, Ooh La La?

Today I signed into Blogger, and realized that it's been almost a month since my last post. Sorry, I've been neglecting my blog. Anyways, I'm back. I thought it would be fitting to return with something new. Instead of just one review, this post will have three. I know, I know, it's exciting - isn't it? The theme for the reviews will be "Upcoming Hits". Now that's catchy. These will be songs that I think have a pretty good chance in becoming radio super hits. I'm not saying the artists need to be new, only the songs. Let's see how this goes...

Switchfoot - Mess Of Me

I think that this song could go to No. 1 on the rock and alternative charts. Switchfoot have already established a pretty decent radio reputation with "Meant To Live" and "Dare You To Move". This might actually be my favorite song of theirs. It's more exciting than their previous singles.

Ke$ha - TiK ToK

This one is very unfortunate. As much as I dislike this song, I fear it will shoot up the Top 40 chart. The song's chorus seems like something stolen from Lady GaGa, and the verses... wow. She sings about beer and "swagger". The song could be seen as a fun party tune, but I see it as trashy.

Lady GaGa - Bad Romance

I probably gave this one away in the blog title. Bad Romance is going to be No. 1. She's already done it four times in a row. I don't know why everyone is fascinated with her. I guess she's just something different. I have to admit, her songs are catchy. (Check out the music video, whoa creepy.)

There they are, my predictions. I know, Lady GaGa isn't a very risky guess. By the way, what do you think of Owl City? Fireflies has taken over. Who else thinks that Owl City is here to stay? Fireflies just sounds so... happy. Well I'm going to try to update the blog on a regular basis now that I'm back. See ya next time.