My Summer Soundtrack

So last week saw the UK embroiled in a heatwave and the weather was heavenly. Seeing as I'm not going on holiday this year, not yet anyway, I fully basked in the glory of the sun and the weather was long overdue! But, true to British form, the cold, miserable weather is now well and truly back and I have had to swap my shorts for jeans. Boo!

With the Olympics now in full swing and random outbursts of sunshine, it is slowly starting to feel like summer and nothing compliments summer as well as a summer soundtrack! The song that makes me feel most summery is a song called "Brokenhearted" by American duo Karmin.

I first heard this catchy pop track on Capital FM about a month ago and I instantly loved it. It's such an uplifting song and makes you want to dance and it was the PERFECT song for me and my friend to dance around in the summer sunshine to last week! 

The song was released last Sunday and debuted at a respectable number 6 in the UK singles chart which is a pretty big achievement given that the song was not promoted at all throughout the UK - no television performances, no press interviews, nothing. One thing us British do is embrace the catchy pop tracks churned out by the Americans. I mean we kept Carly Rae Jepsen at number one with "Call Me Maybe" for four weeks and the song is still riding high in the charts months after its release.

A few other songs that I'm loving at the minute are Wiley featuring Ms D, "Heatwave". I look forward to this song coming on  in a club one night when I'm out and I can imagine this song being a huuuuge hit in Ibiza and the like! I'm also loving Far East Movement featuring Cover Drive, "Turn Up the Love". I really love Cover Drive. Their reggae-influenced tracks are so anthemic. I'd love to see them live.

I am also bracing myself for the release of Rita Ora's debut album, "O.R.A", which is released on 27th August. 

I have a feeling that this album will be the soundtrack to my summer, autumn and winter! I can't wait for when she tours as I will be there!

Rihanna for River Island!

So, fresh off the press, it's been confirmed that Rihanna is launching a clothing range and has chosen to collaborate with high street chain, and one of my favourite outlets, River Island!

I'm so excited for this collaboration! It's going to be interesting to see the tone and style of the range, given that RiRi is famed for her more raunchy outfits. But a clothing range has been a long time coming, especially given the fact that Rihanna is very much involved in the fashion industry at the moment - her Sky Living TV show, Styled to Rock, is due to premiere in August. And now it's official: she's venturing into the designing aspect and has chosen the UK as the country to debut her collection to.

Below is the link to the official press release:

http://www.rihannanow.com/news-article/rihanna-for-river-island/

It really is a great year for the UK!

"Baby, I don't know what you done-done-done" - Misha B - Home Run

After a month or so away from the blogosphere I'm back with plenty to post!

To start with I have a video from X Factor 2011 alumni, Miss Misha B. Last year on The X Factor, Misha was a stand-out act and consistently delivered stellar performances and seemed like a dead cert to clinch the title of X Factor Winner 2011. But it just wasn't meant to be as she was eliminated in the semi-final.

Almost a year later, Misha B is back with her debut solo single, 'Home Run'. It's an infectious club track, with heavy beats and a great bass-line. It showcases what Misha does best. She is so current and relevant and is exactly what the UK music industry needs. The UK doesn't have a home-grown urban Queen, and Misha B is most definitely on her way to gaining that title for herself.

The track is released at midnight on Sunday, 15th July and below is the music video for the track. Enjoy!

Nicole Scherzinger confirmed for The X Factor UK

Following Kelly Rowland's departure from The X Factor judging panel, the question on everybody's lips was "who is going to replace her?" With bosses unable to secure a permanent fourth judge before the auditions began, various guest judges filled the vacant chair on the judging panel. It was believed that the various guest judges were all in line to be signed up as a permanent judge, depending on how well their 'trial' went. And after weeks of suspense and deliberation, it was revealed today that Nicole Scherzinger was the chosen one.

Scherzinger has been named as the
fourth & final judge for The X Factor UK

I have to say, Nicole was the obvious choice. She has guest judged on The X Factor in the past and has always been popular with UK audiences. She's a lot more endearing than Kelly Rowland. Rowland was way too feisty and clashed with the judges too often last series. Also, Nicole has the experience having been a judge on The X Factor USA last year, replacing Cheryl Cole on the panel after being unceremoniously sacked. I think it was always obvious that Simon Cowell would choose Nicole; he's obviously a huge fan of hers, even after dismissing her from The X Factor USA at the end of the series and replacing her with Britney Spears.

That said, I personally think that Simon should have chosen somebody else. Somebody outside of The X Factor fold. I am a huge Nicole fan; I loved her in The Pussycat Dolls and loved her when she went solo, but I think change is a good thing and Nicole is far too familiar. But then again, who else was there to choose from? There is no way on this earth that Cheryl would make a return to the panel, as amazing as that would be. I would have loved for Rita Ora to join the panel but she lacks experience, I think; she doesn't have the credentials to become a mentor at this early stage in her career.

However, I have no doubt that Nicole will be fabulous. She's ridiculously talented and the UK love her. Her career in the UK, by the end of this year, will be huge.

Now let the countdown begin for The X Factor to return to our screens.

A new love for Usher and Coldplay...

I will be the first to admit that Usher and Coldplay are not two music artists that I've been a huge fan of over the years. Okay, I know more Usher songs than Coldplay songs, but still, neither have really taken residence on my iPod or Spotify playlists. Until now.

I still wouldn't say that I'm a fan of their music, but I guess you could say I 'appreciate' their music more; I think Usher has a profound effect on females, for obvious reasons, and I think the reason I'm not really a huge Coldplay fan is because they're a band - I very, very rarely enjoy music by bands, especially alternative bands like Coldplay. But this week, both of their recent musical offerings are perhaps two of my favourite songs.

Usher's new track, "Scream", is such a club track. I can imagine it coming on in a crowded club and just dancing like crazy to it, as you do. But I do have extreme love for this song at the minute. I saw him performing online at the Capital FM Summertime Ball last weekend and he was, surprisingly, really good. His energy was great and his vocals and live performance weren't too shabby, either. I remember some of Usher's earlier tracks, such as Caught Up, Burn and, one of my favourites, Yeah! So he definitely has achieved longevity. And, it would appear that, he hasn't lost his effect on the ladies, as is demonstrated by him taking his shirt off at the Summertime Ball to reveal his famous six pack. The screams say it all. But yeah, I love "Scream".

Coldplay are one band that I seriously never, EVER thought that I would find myself embracing and actually enjoying one of their songs. To me, personally, I feel that the majority of their songs all sound and seem the same. I guess I would say they're a tad repetitive, but that's just my opinion and I know that there are probably a million or more people out there who would oppose my opinion. But I have to say I really like "Princess of China" featuring none other than Miss Robyn Rihanna Fenty AKA Barbadian Goddess, Rihanna.

I have to say that Rihanna collaborating with Coldplay is such a weird collaboration; they're from completely different genres of music, but it works so well on "Princess of China". Maybe I'm completely warped and only like the song because of Rihanna featuring but, whatever the reason is behind my liking, I don't care. I love the sound of the track, it sounds quite oriental which is a nice nod to the title of the track. I also love the music video. Rihanna looks HOT! Which is no surpise, really. And the chemistry between her and Chris Martin is extremely convincing. So yeah, perhaps I'm converting into a Coldplay fan. Only time will tell, but I sincerely doubt it.

Check out the "Princess of China" video below. Super creative and brilliantly filmed and constructed.

Cosmo Blog Awards 2012

Okay, so, I've entered into the Cosmo Blog Awards 2012. I've never entered a competition in my life, so I thought there's no time like the present!

If you like what you see, nominate me!

Thanks :)

Fifty Shades of Grey

I, like the rest of the world, have become enchanted with E.L James' 'Fifty Shades' trilogy. For those of you have been living underneath a rock for the last few months and have no clue what the trilogy is about, I'll give a nutshell summary.

The 'Fifty Shades' trilogy

The books explore the relationship between the illusive, mysterious and gorgeous billionaire, Christian Grey, and recent college graduate, Anastasia Steele. Christian is a sadist, Ana is a virgin; cue a genuinely messed up relationship, dominated by feelings, emotions and BDSM relations.

Tulisa with her copy of
'Fifty Shades'

In the press I'd seen many celebrities reading this book, or rather was informed of many celebrities reading this book, such as Tulisa and Holly Willoughby. But it wasn't until a friend recommended the series to me that I truly showed a keen interest in the series and purchased the first two books to see what all the fuss was about. And now I know.

I've read the first two books so far and am just about to start reading the third and final book in the series. But I'm seriously hooked. The first book was quite slow starting, as is the same with any book in a series; the narrative has to be set, key characters introduced, etc. But the second novel, Fifty Shades Darker, was truly gripping. From start to finish I was enthralled. I'm hoping Fifty Shades Freed, the final book in the series, is equally as gripping as its predecessor. Although I will be a tad gutted when I finish the series.

However, I have the movie adaptation to look forward to! Yes, Universal Pictures have acquired the rights to adapt the series into a movie trilogy. There's been many rumours circulating regarding actors and actresses who could play Christian and Ana; I personally would like to see Ian Somerhalder and Scarlett Johansson play Christian and Ana, respectively. They're both gorgeous and I think they could bring the sizzling chemistry between Christian and Ana effortlessly. But I have no idea how the erotic scenes from the book will transfer onto the big screen. The movie will most definitely have to have a '18+' classification. And, hopefully, the movies will do the novels justice and not have the adverse effect. But we shall see.

Ian and Scarlett have been linked to the
'Fifty Shades of Grey' movie adaptation