Former Pussycat Doll Jessica Sutta Returns to Take The Dance Charts by Storm; New Single 'Again' Out Now

Following the break up of international pop group and Robin Antin brainchild, The Pussycat Dolls, Jessica Sutta has been forging ahead with her own pop career.  Her latest effort, a STUNNING rager of a dance pop anthem, "Again," out today on iTunes.  Premiering yesterday on Billboard.com, "Again" was produced by and features Kemal Golden - released on Citrusonic Stereophonic.  Listen to it in full on Billboard or a snippet of the track BELOW.

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Dutch Dance Diva Eva Simons Returns with Hot New Single

Dutch recording artist Eva Simons needs to become a household name.  After releasing popular tunes like her 2009 hit "Silly Boy," and the international smash collaboration with DJ Afrojack, "Take Over Control,"  27 year Eva Simons is BACK on the dancefloor with a bangin' new track called "I Don't Like You." AMAZING.  Simons premiered the new single March 20th and released it internationally on March 26th through Interscope Records.  The song was produced by German producer/DJ Zedd, who's known for 'Zedd style' which draws from the Progressive house, Complextro and Dubstep genres of dance music.  Zedd has worked with everyone from The Black Eyed Peas, and Lady Gaga to Fatboy Slim, Skrillex and Armand Van Helden.

Eva Simons first gained notoriety in 2004 when she competed in and won the Dutch version of Popstars, a TV talent show and precursor to the Idol series.  On the show, Simons was a member of short lived girl band, Raffish, which disbanded in 2006.  Simons surfaced again in a big way in 2009 when her song "Silly Boy" leaked online, featuring hot as hell remixes by Dave Audé, DJ Escape & Tony Coluccio and Richard Vission.  "Silly Boy" was eventually released as Simons' debut single at the end of July 2009, after amassing over 10 million listens on YouTube.

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Melody Thornton Goes From Singing Riffs, To Singing Songs

Melody Thornton is arguably the second most talented SINGING-member of Robin Antin's Pussycat Dolls pop group (although Kimberly Wyatt has certainly proved herself with new band Her Majesty and The Wolves) and after many past rumblings about a solo career, the time has finally come for Thornton to shine. Released independently on June 16th, Thornton's first single, "Sweet Vendetta" is a lovely Motown throwback that really showcases her vocals. This retro-inspired pop song really goes to show how just under-utilized Thornton was as a member of The Pussycat Dolls. Sure, Melody would chime in on the occasional riff or two, but everybody knows that PCD was the Nicole Scherzinger show. Now that she's solo, she seems ready for the inevitable journey from member of a highly successful pop group to struggling solo artist. Thornton recently took the time to speak to Rap-Up TV, saying:

"I’m hoping by next year I should have something together as far as an album goes, but we’re just doing it song by song. I did ‘Sweet Vendetta’ on a shoestring budget. I’m funding it myself, independent artist." {SOURCE}

In an interview with The Source, Thornton explained her influences for the new album, reportedly called Hit The Ground Running, as being 60s influenced, citing influences like James Brown, BB King, Aretha Franklin and the Jackson 5.  While working on the new album, Thornton has collaborated with the likes of Cee-Lo Green, Polow Da Don and Lil Wayne and expects an album release sometime in early 2012.  Thornton recently finished up a stint on UK reality series, Popstar to Operastar, being eliminated third.  Listen to "Sweet Vendetta" below and download it on U.S. iTunes HERE.

Check out Melody Thornton on the web:

Official Site//MySpace//Facebook//Twitter//YouTube

New Look, New Blog Post

Hello friends! It's been far too long. You'll notice a couple of differences on my blog. Well...probably one and that's the layout. I am loving Blogger's new layout design tools. I thought it was time for a change so I just went ahead and changed things over. Still has the same look overall but I'm using a new template.

I thought I would EASE my way back into blogging with a "back to basics" approach - the all too simple "Album Artwork Update." Yeah, I know it doesn't take too long to upload a bunch of pictures but hey - give me a break! I need to take it slow here.

So without further ado...

Oh...Side Note: Some of this information might seem a bit out of date. This is likely because I started the post a couple of weeks ago and never finished it. Forgive me.

I don't really think this song needs any introduction. Written by Lady Gaga, Rodney Jerkins, LaShawn Daniels, Lazonate Franklin and Beyoncé "Telephone" had one of the most anticipated video premieres ever...and for good reason. It's a masterpiece! If you haven't checked it out yet, what are you waiting for? Check it out HERE. I love the single sleeve here. It mirrors the whole Kill Bill influence seen throughout the video in terms of the fonts and still photos. Download the remix EP on iTunes HERE. You can also pick up the video HERE.

"Scars" is the second single from American Idol's third runner up Allison Iraheta last season and it's a ballad. Debut single "Friday I'll Be Over U" was cute, uptempo and fun but didn't really showcase Iraheta's chops. "Scars" should do that and then some.


"Put It In A Love Song" served as Alicia Keys' official 3rd single in the U.S. ("Try Sleeping With A Broken Heart" will serve as her third UK single, due out May 24th) and was released in January. "Un-Thinkable (I'm Ready)" will be her official 4th single and was released to radio on March 15th. It's really a shame that Love Song featuring Beyoncé didn't have more of an impact on radio as it's one of my favorites from The Element of Freedom. "Un-Thinkable (I'm Ready)" is a ballad featuring Drake produced by Noah "40" Shebib. It's got a really stripped down, raw feeling. Not as "fun" as it's predecessor but it really showcases Keys' vulnerability and talent.

"Whataya Want From Me" is Adam Lambert's second single from his debut album For Your Entertainment. After the crazy debacle that was his performance at the AMAs last year, Lambert and his label seemed anxious to move on. Lambert made a series of TV appearances performing the ballad. Written by P!nk, Max Martin and Johan Shellback, the track was originally intended for P!nk's Funhouse album, but never made the final cut. The song is growing on my considerably, thanks in part due to the remixes by Fonzerelli that have surfaced. Check out the video HERE and check out THIS stripped down Australian performance.

Now I've never been a fan of Hole OR Courtney Love for that matter, but I'm always up for a good comeback/trainwreck. To be honest, I was kind of excited about Courtney's long-in-the-works solo career that never materialized so it will be interesting to see how this goes. "Skinny Little Bitch" will serve as Hole's first single off of Hole's fourth album, Nobody's Daughter and fourteenth single overall. The song isn't something I would normally listen to but it's growing on me. After a 10 year hiatus, it's safe to say that this is one of the years most anticipated comebacks. Download it on iTunes HERE.

"Freak" featuring Kardinal Offishall is the new David Guetta-produced single for UK R&B singer Estelle, who took the U.S. (and the world) by storm two years ago with her Top Ten single "American Boy,"featuring American rapper Kanye West. This time around she's pairing up with Canadian rapper/producer Kardinal Offishall on a decidedly LESS R&B/Hip-Hop sounding track. "Freak" is an electro JAM with Guetta's trademark beats all over it. Check out the cool video HERE. Download it on iTunes HERE.

Diana Mae Vickers is the latest pop star to come off of the UK talent show The X-Factor. Vickers competed in the 2008 series (Alexandra Burke, JLS), ultimately being signed with RCA Records. "Once" is the debut single (April 19th) from her forthcoming album Songs from the Tainted Cherry Tree, due to be released May 3rd. After X-Factor, Vickers went on to star in her first West End show, The Rise and Fall of Little Voice, showcasing her talent on the stage. Nerina Pallot, Ellie Goulding, Starsmith, Alexis Strum, Patrick Wolf, and Guy Sigsworth are just some of the big names Vickers' collaborated with while making this album. "Once" is a beautiful song (with a beautiful video) and I think she has lots of potential to become another X-Factor success story.

"Pyromania" is a new single from Cascada, and while it's not part of the Evacuate The Dancefloor album, it's got a very similar sound. According to lead singer Natalie Horler, Cascada is working on a new album so in all likelihood "Pyromania" will make an appearance. I like the cheesiness of the song. While I don't think the track will have much influence on mainstream radio here in the U.S., I think that this song has the same potential to do well in the clubs. I'll always be a closet Cascada fan. They are SUCH a guilty pleasure! Check out the new video HERE.

"Upside Down" is Paloma Faith's 4th UK single, released on March 15th. I am a HUGE fan when an artist's artwork all follows a theme and so far Faith's has been consistently top notch. Colorful costumes, crazy hair and makeup...I love it! The song is also one of my favorites from Do You Want The Truth or Something Beautiful? It's got a great old fashioned jazzy feel to it. The video is also fantastic, as are the club remixes from Cahill. This is one artists who I would die to se live here in the U.S. I think we're ready for a Paloma Faith invasion.

Poor Pussycat Dolls. They keep losing members left and right! With all of the girls now working on solo projects, Robin Antin and Nicole Scherzinger both are saying that some "new faces" will be coming on board. Sounds like a reinvention. I honestly can't say that losing Carmit Bachar was all that devastating to the group's success but losing EVERYONE except for the lead singer? That could be potentially very jarring. I mean, who are we kidding...it's always been Nicole Scherzinger front and center with her back up dancers and I can't foresee that changing so who really cares who's in the group, right? As long as the songs are hot, that's all that really matters? At any rate - Kimberly Wyatt has released a new promo single called "Not Just A Doll" in which she claims to be a "dreamer" and that she's "not just a doll." Nothing spectacular, but feel free to check it out on iTunes. The real solo album I'm looking forward to from this crew is Melody Thornton, though it would be interesting to hear what Jessica Sutta comes up with. I quite liked her in German DJ/Remixer Paul Van Dyk's "White Lies."

Taio Cruz is another fantastic British artists that I've been familiar with for quite some time, who's starting to get popular here in the States. His single "Break Your Heart" was released in America at the end of February and went all the way to the top of Billboard's Hot 100 chart. Pretty impressive for a first single! I'm guessing that the re-jiggered American version featuring Rapper Ludacris didn't hurt. U.S. radio stations do tend to prefer it's pop music with R&B/Hip-Hop influences, so Taio Cruz's blend of the two musical genres should do him very well here in states, and I couldn't be more thrilled. I've already turned several friends onto his beats. America - get used to Taio Cruz. He's gonna be huge. Now...if only the video for his next UK single would finally premiere. Cruz is releasing "Dirty Picture" featuring the ever popular Ke$ha on April 26th. It will serve as the official third UK single. If the U.S. label were smart, they'd release it as his second U.S. single. Ke$ha is sort riding high at the moment.

Billboard Dance/Club Play Chart - August 13, 2009

Not too much movement in the Top 10 this past week. Most artists moved either one or two spots up. The Paradiso Girls dropped from 3 to 10, as did the The Pussycat Dolls, but that was to be expected as they were in the #1 spot last week. Bubbling under the Top 10 are some exciting artists including La Roux (Bulletproof - #11), Jonas Brothers (Paranoid - #21), and the Noisettes (Don't Upset The Rhythm (Go Baby Go) - #22). And without further ado...here's this past week's Billboard Dance/Club Play Chart.

Thursday, August 13 2009

Waking Up In Vegas (Katy Perry)

#1 (Last Week - #2)

Crazy Possessive (Kaci Battaglia)

#2 (Last Week - #4)

Fire Burning (Sean Kingston)

#3 (Last Week - #5)

Money's Too Tight To Mention (Simply Red)

#4 (Last Week - #6)

Be Alright (Kristine W.)

#5 (Last Week - #7)

Sweet Dreams (Beyoncé)

#6 (Last Week - #9)

Goodbye (Kristinia DeBarge)

#7 (Last Week - #10)

Hush Hush;Hush Hush (The Pussycat Dolls)

#8 (Last Week - #1)

Give You Everything (Erika Jayne)

#9 (Last Week - #8)

Patron Tequila (Paradiso Girls feat. Lil Jon & Eve)

#10 (Last Week - #3)

Billboard Dance/Club Play Chart - August 6, 2009

I've been so out of it after work this past week, so my blog posts have become less frequent. I need to get myself some more energy! Perhaps I should go to the gym...I am after all paying for a membership. ANYWAY...here's this past weeks Billboard Dance/Club Play Chart. Last week's #1, Erika Jayne's "Give You Everything" drops down to #8 leaving the #1 spot to the Pussycat Dolls. Sweet! I'm also thrilled to see that "Patron Tequila" jumped up to #3. Good for the Paradiso Girls! Beyoncé's "Sweet Dreams" jumps up 8 spots this week, entering the Top 10 at #9.

Oh...so I'm super excited about a couple of opportunities coming up...I'll should be receiving a copy of the new (or should I say debut) Erika Jayne album for review, Pretty Mess, due out August 11th via E1 Music. EXCITING! I love Ms. Jayne. She's playing a few clubs here in the States so check her out if you can! August 11, Jayne's playing the House of Blues in Atlantic City and on September 5th, you can catch her in Vegas at Crave.

Thursday, August 6 2009

Hush Hush;Hush Hush (The Pussycat Dolls)

#1 (Last Week - #2)

Waking Up In Vegas (Katy Perry)

#2 (Last Week - #3)

Patron Tequila (Paradiso Girls feat. Lil Jon & Eve)

#3 (Last Week - #5)

Crazy Possessive (Kaci Battaglia)

#4 (Last Week - #8)

Fire Burning (Sean Kingston)

#5 (Last Week - #6)

Money's Too Tight To Mention (Simply Red)

#6 (Last Week - #7)

Be Alright (Kristine W.)

#7 (Last Week - #11)

Give You Everything (Erika Jayne)

#8 (Last Week - #1)

Sweet Dreams (Beyoncé)

#9 (Last Week - #17)

Goodbye (Kristinia DeBarge)

#10 (Last Week - #14)

Billboard Dance/Club Play Chart - July 30, 2009

Here's Thursday's Hot Dance/Club Play Chart from Billboard. LA-based dance/electro-pop singer Erika Jayne takes the top spot this week, seeing PSB drop back down to #9. Lady Gaga's "LoveGame" also drops from #5 to #10. I'm BEYOND thrilled that the Paradiso Girls have hit the Top 5 (although I wish they'd hit the mainstream charts with just as much gusto). Not any other big moves in the Top Ten, but a side note...I'm really hoping that all of these rumors circulating about the Pussycat Dolls breaking up aren't true. I can't say that I'd be surprised if they were true, I'm just hoping they aren't. The world still needs some Doll Domination!

Erika Jayne

Thursday, July 30 2009

Give You Everything (Erika Jayne)

#1 (Last Week - #2)

Hush Hush;Hush Hush (The Pussycat Dolls)

#2 (Last Week - #3)

Waking Up In Vegas (Katy Perry)

#3 (Last Week - #4)

Sing (Wynonna Judd)

#4 (Last Week - #6)

Patron Tequila (Paradiso Girls feat. Lil Jon & Eve)

#5 (Last Week - #7)

Fire Burning (Sean Kingston)

#6 (Last Week - #8)

Money's Too Tight To Mention (Simply Red)

#7 (Last Week - #9)

Crazy Possessive (Kaci Battaglia)

#8 (Last Week - #10)

Love Etc. (Pet Shop Boys)

#9 (Last Week - #1)

LoveGame (Lady Gaga)

#10 (Last Week - #5)

Billboard Dance/Club Play Chart - July 23, 2009

Billboard has always been one of my top resources for this blog. My favorite sections? The news section of course, the charts and the Ask Billboard column (now written by Gary Trust).

Sometime early this week or late last week, Billboard.com got a complete makeover. While it took me a little while to get used to it...I'm really starting to like it. It appears that the Ask Billboard column has now been melded together with Chart Beat. Makes sense I guess. The charts section AMAZING now. I love it. Gray and pink...good color scheme, Billboard. Nice work.

Every Thursday without fail, I check out Billboard's Hot Dance/Club Play Chart to see which of my favorite dance artists are moving where. This chart tracks "the week's most popular songs played in dance clubs, compiled from reports from a national sample of club DJs."

Starting today, and every Thursday after I'll be posting the top 10 from Billboard's Hot Dance/Club Play Chart. Sure, it's redundant if you read Billboard on your own but if you don't and you like dance music - I've got you covered!

Billboard Hot Dance/Club Play Chart -

Thursday, July 23 2009

Love Etc. (Pet Shop Boys)
#1 - (Last Week - #2)
Give You Everything (Erika Jayne)
#2 - (Last Week - #4)
Hush Hush;Hush Hush (The Pussycat Dolls)
#3 - (Last Week - #5)
Waking Up In Vegas (Katy Perry)
#4 - (Last Week - #6)
LoveGame (Lady Gaga)
#5 - (Last Week - #1)

Sing (Wynonna Judd)

#6 - (Last Week - #7)

Patron Tequila (Paradiso Girls feat. Lil Jon & Eve)

#7 - (Last Week - #10)

Fire Burning (Sean Kingston)

#8 - (Last Week - #11)

Money's Too Tight To Mention (Simply Red)

#9 - (Last Week - #12)

Crazy Possessive (Kaci Battaglia)

#10 - (Last Week - #14)

My Weekly Last FM Chart

The Prophet's been blogging about his Last FM charts...this is something I did a while back but never kept up with. Seeing it on The Prophet got me thinking that perhaps, I should give it a shot again. Here it goes...my most listened to artists and songs for the week.

Most Listened To Artists:

1. Pitbull

2. Beyonce

3. Britney Spears

4. LMFAO

5. The Pussycat Dolls

Most Listened To Song:

1. Pittbull - I Know You Want Me (Calle Ocho)

2. Paradiso Girls - Patron Tequila

3. Freemasons (feat. Sophie Ellis-Bextor) - Heartbreak (Make Me A Dancer)

4. LMFAO - Scream My Name

5. Jimi Polo - Better Days (Sasha Remix)

Paradiso Girls feat. Lil Jon - Patron Tequila

Chelsea Korka (of The Pussycat Dolls Present) posted the leaked version of "Patron Tequila" by the Paradiso Girls. Funny how Keri Hilson's version "leaked" last week, though now the audio has been taken off YouTube due to copyright issues. At any rate, I really am diggin' this track. I can't wait to get it in high quality and I can't wait to hear the inevitable remixes! Sounds like a well put together girl's group. The harmonies in the chorus are hot and more than one of the girls can actually sing (unlike PCD). I'm looking forward to hearing more from the Paradiso Girls!

*EDIT* Found Keri's version on another YouTube channel. The YouTube Channel has this message posted...

"HEY GIRL - KERi HiLSON, T-PAiN & LiL JON [FREE DL] SUBSCRIBE NOW AND I WILL SEND YOU A PERSONAL MESSAGE WITH THE LINK TO MY SITE WHERE YOU CAN DOWNLOAD THIS FREE MP3 DIRECTLY THANKS."

Hmm...interesting. Could there be a Paradiso Girls vs. Keri Hilson war brewin'?

• Listen To "Patron Tequila" by The Paradiso Girls - HERE
• Listen To "Hey Girl" by Keri Hilson - HERE

Which version do you like better?

Paradiso Girls

I've mentioned once before that Chelsea Korka from TVs The Pussycat Dolls Present: Search For The Next Doll has joined a new girl group. The group, formed by PCD visionary, Robin Antin are going to be marketed as a European Pussycat Dolls with some slight changes. One major change will be the lack of a lead singer--a "Nicole Scherzinger" if you will. The girls are from the UK, France and America. Anyway, Korka posted new pictures on her MySpace page of the fledgling girl group. They kind of remind me of the Pussycat Dolls...so I guess Robin Antin achieved what she set out to do. Like I said in the last post, they are currently signed to Interscope Records. Information is trickling out about the girls pretty slowly right now. It appears that they are in rehearsals and that Chelsea has been working on perfecting her dance moves so as I get info, I'll post it!

The Next Doll (Sort Of) - Chelsea Korka

Imagine my surprise when I read about Chelsea Korka from THE SEARCH FOR THE NEXT DOLL, joining another girl group founded by Pussycat Dolls founder, Robin Antin!

The CW show pitted girls against one another with the ultimate prize being a chance to join the Pussycat Dolls as another member of the singing, dancing pop act. While Korka didn't win (Asia Nitollano did--and reportedly opted not to join PCD, instead going solo) she was my favorite. While her dancing ability was always at the bottom compared to the other girls, her singing talent and beauty had me rooting for her from the beginning. Going from self-proclaimed "fat girl" to the hot thing she is now also added an interesting dimension to her character.

Signed with Interscope Records, The Paradiso Girls is the new girl group, created by PCD founder Robin Antin. While details are few and far between right now, the group appears to be aiming for the European pop market. The group consists of 5 members, 3 English, 1 French and 1 American (Korka). According to Korka's MySpace blog the girl group will differ from groups like the Pussycat Dolls in that there will be no defined lead singer.

This is pretty exciting. The group will most likely be promoted and marketed in Europe though like I said before, there is very little concrete information available now about The Paradiso Girls. Good for Korka! She also reports in her blog that she has been taking dancing lessons. Wishing her the best!