Shayne Ward Releases Third Album in America on Tuesday, 'Close To Close' To Serve as Lead Single

It appears that X-Factor winner Shayne Ward is releasing Obsession in America. Ward announced the news on Friday via Facebook:

"Calling America! Great news for all Shayne's US fans! The brilliant third album Obsession is set for a digital release on February 8th in the US! "Close To Close" will be the lead track in the States so don't forget to call your local radio station and request it! ;) Also visit VEVO on Tuesday to see the hot video for... ‘Gotta Be Somebody’ and be sure to follow Shayne on Twitter for more news."

This is all very interesting indeed. While Obsession hasn't been a complete failure in Ward's native UK, it has been the least successful of his three albums. Starting out strong with his debut self titled album premiering at #1 back in 2006, Ward's sophomore album, 2007's Breathless peaked at #2 on the Official UK Album Chart.  When Obsession was released back in November the album managed to stall out at the #15 spot on the UK Album Chart. What's more, the first single off of Obsession, a cover of Nickelback's "Gotta Be Somebody" is Ward's second lowest charting single to date, peaking at #12 - just two spots higher than his third and final single off his debut album.

Even more confusing still is the fact that Shayne Ward has yet to release a second single off of Obsession.  Why focus any energy on cracking the U.S. market when you still have promo to do in your home country? It just doesn't seem like a smart decision.  If you're going to crack America, you need to put EVERYTHING into it and even that's not a guarantee that you're going to succeed.  I can say that NOT releasing "Gotta Be Somebody" as the first single in America was probably a wise move.  Nickelback is a pretty polarizing band here in the states - either you love them or you hate them with a passion.

The first U.S. single, "Close To Close" is a mid-tempo pop/R&B track co-written by Max Martin, Arnthor Birgisson and Savan Kotecha with Birgisson filling in on producer duties as well.  While I'd like to see Shayne come to this side of the pond to help promote the album, seeing that it's strictly a digital release I don't see it happening.  Heck - I'm shocked that there was even an announcement at all.  Watch the video for "Gotta Be Somebody" BELOW and get yourself a copy of Obsession when it's released tomorrow, February 8th.  Thanks goes to Pop Music Notes for the heads up on this.

Check out Shayne Ward on the web:

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

Shayne Ward To Release Nickelback Cover in November...World Asks 'Why Nickelback?'

**This post had been flagged for COPYRIGHT INFRINGEMENT. I'm not sure why.  The artwork above is from Shayne Ward's official MySpace page.  The embedded video below comes from Shayne Ward's official YouTube channel. Embedding is not blocked for this video so I assume it's fair game to post on a blog.  I WAS linking to two unofficial YouTube videos not authorized by the artist. I have since edited the blog so that all video links are coming from official sources.**

It seems like it's been an ETERNITY since X-Factor star Shayne Ward has had new material out but the wait is finally over! "Gotta Be Somebody," due out November 7th, will serve as the first single off his upcoming third album, Obsession. "Gotta Be Somebody" is an interesting choice for a single...considering it's a Nickelback cover. "Gotta Be Somebody" was released off of the band's 2008 album Dark Horse where it went Top Ten on the Billboard Hot 100 and Top Twenty on the UK singles chart. Ward's new album features production from RedOne and Taio Cruz and is due to be released on November 15th on Syco Music. Listen to a 30 second clip of the new single below. Not much to go on really. Guess we'll have to wait and see if this is good or if this is shit. I'm on the fence at this point. WHY NICKELBACK?! WHY? (via Digital Spy)

Check out Shayne Ward on the web:

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

Hot Remixes: Steamweaver Remixes the likes of Beyonce, Rihanna, Jennifer Lopez, and more!

Ever since Steamweaver contacted me last summer about his remixes of Beyonce's "Sweet Dreams," and "Right Here" by Carmen Reece he's been busy mixing up todays hottest hits readying them for the dancefloor. Since Beyonce & Carmen Reece, Steamweaver has remixed the likes of Britney Spears, Rihanna, Nick Harvey and now Jennifer Lopez. Steamweaver is fast becoming a big name on the unofficial remix front and now with official mixes in the can for Nick Harvey and Brian - things are looking up. I can't wait to hear what's next! Be sure and check out all of Steamweaver's stuff on his MySpace page. In the meantime, here's his remixography to date:

Beyonce - Sweet Dreams

Sweet Dreams (Steamweaver Club Mix) - 7:16
Sweet Dreams (Steamweaver Radio Mix) - 3:51
Sweet Dreams (Steamweaver "Lights On" Dub) - 8:04
Sweet Dreams (Steamweaver Tribe-A-Pella) - 6:17

Download them HERE

Carmen Reece - Right Here

Right Here (Steamweaver Club Mix) - 9:20
Right Here (Steamweaver Radio Mix #1) - 3:48
Right Here (Steamweaver Radio Mix #2) - 4:31

Download them HERE

Britney Spears - Steamweaver Megamix (Dirty Radio Edit)

Download it HERE

Brooke Hogan - Hey Yo

Hey Yo (Steamweaver Radio Edit)
Hey Yo (Steamweaver House Remix)
Hey Yo (Steamweaver Dub Mix)

Download them HERE

Rihanna - Russian Roulette

"I loved the song from the moment I heard it, and wanted to do something very dancey and anthemic, while keeping the dark and emotional mood from the original. The tempo was tough (around 80BPM), so I decided to go 133BPM - not too slow for the vocals, neither too fast for the genre. Anyway, I had fun with this one, especially with the vocal manipulation (check the full mix!)"

Russian Roulette (Steamweaver Bonus Beats) - 4:56
Russian Roulette (Steamweaver Club Anthem - Vox Up) - 12:11
Russian Roulette (Steamweaver Club Anthem) - 12:11
Russian Roulette (Steamweaver Mixshow Instrumental) - 8:13
Russian Roulette (Steamweaver Mixshow - Vox Up) - 8:13
Russian Roulette (Steamweaver Mixshow) - 8:13
Russian Roulette (Steamweaver Pad-A-Pella) - 9:34
Russian Roulette (Steamweaver Radio Instrumental) - 4:31
Russian Roulette (Steamweaver Radio Mix - Vox Up) - 4:31
Russian Roulette (Steamweaver Radio Mix) - 4:31
Russian Roulette (Steamweaver Tribe-A-Pella) - 9:32

Download them HERE

Nick Harvey - Wurkin (Steamweaver Club Mix) - 10:56

Buy it HERE

Vibelicious & Dean Boudreau - Last Christmas

Last Christmas (Steamweaver Radio Christmas)
Last Christmas (Steamweaver Club Christmas)

Download them HERE

Jennifer Lopez - Louboutins

"These are House mixes, quite different from my usual Big Room style, but I hope you like it :)"

Louboutins (Steamweaver Designer Radio Mix) - 3:45
Louboutins (Steamweaver Designer Club Mix) - 7:30
Louboutins (Steamweaver Runway Dub Mix) - 8:00

Download them HERE

Brian - Too Grown For That

Too Grown For That (Steamweaver Radio Mix) - 3:59
Too Grown For That (Steamweaver Radio Mix With Rap) - 3:59
Too Grown For That (Steamweaver Club Mix) - 8:22
Too Grown For That (Steamweaver Padapella) - 6:06

Buy them HERE