Posts Tagged ‘culture’

Top 5 Alicia Keys Hits

Tuesday, August 24th, 2010

So first off, by all-time I mean up to this point. I am sure Alicia Keys is not done writing for her lifetime, but here are the five best put out by the New York City native.

1. No One – This song was the first single off of “As I Am,” and showed off Alicia’s range like few other songs. The passion, which you can see on her music video, rocketed this hit to #1 and became an instant hit.

2. You may remember her first hit ever, the song Falling, which was a product of her first ever CD back in the late 1990s. This was the beginning of Alicia Keys, and little did we know how lasting her presence would be.

3. Number three on our list is the song If I Ain’t Got You. This is one of the best piano songs I’ve ever heard and it came straight off her Diary album, one of her top sellers to date.

4. Yet another great song by Alicia Keys is “My Boo”. This is a duet, as the credit goes to Usher since it appeared on his CD, though Alicia Keys played an integral role in the song and it wouldn’t have been nearly as special without her.

5. One of her more recent hits, Superwoman is another classic Alicia Keys chart topper. The lyrics in this song are particularly meaningful, as millions of women worldwide can relate to her here.

Additionally, you’ve probably heard this song in movie soundtracks, commercials, and more, as the commercial appeal to this song has been huge.

This was a tough list to make. Alicia Keys is a valuable artist, but she should be recognized for her best work. Narrowing it down to five was tough, and I apologize ahead of time for showing inadvertent favoritism.

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Second Place In American Idol Doesn’t Happen To Be Too Shabby

Wednesday, August 4th, 2010

Instead of plugging away for years on end, a short cut to instant fame and recognition is to get onto American Idol and become a star.

Sadly, after initial success, a lot of winners disappear from the limelight rarely to be heard of again. This is one of the curses of the TV talent show. There are those, however, who have proved they’re here to stay. The likes of Kelly Clarkson are now global stars selling millions of albums.

The one place in normal competition that nobody wants to end up in is second, but that doesn’t seem to be the case with American Idol. Many of the losers on the night have gone on to have successful careers, often eclipsing the actual winners.

We’ll have a look now at some of the most famous runners up who have American Idol to thank for a great career, even though they didn’t actually win.

The first of the successful runners up was Clay Aiken, back in season two. The skinny nerd transformed week by week in front of our eyes into a real star. He belted out a song like no other, and you that wherever he finished this guy was gonna stick around.

It was a major surprise on the night when America voted Ruben Studdard the winner, as Clay had been the clear favorite. Since Idol, however, their fortunes have been reversed. While Studdard achieved moderate success, Clay has gone from strength to strength and is a major star on the radio and on Broadway.

The runner up from season 7 was the incredibly cute David Archuleta. He placed himself firmly in the hearts of the American public and still remains there today. This guy keeps popping up all over the place and has worked hard to carve himself a very successful career.

It looks as if this year’s second placed contestant Adam Lambert is taking his place on this list too. He was beaten on the night by Kris Allen but in the months since that night, Lambert’s career is going from strength to strength while Allen’s seems to have stalled.

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The Entertaining Stories Of MTV’s Jersey Shore

Friday, July 9th, 2010

It’s been a very interesting season on MTV’s Jersey Shore, and this is the first MTV show in quite a few years that has people buzzing the way they are about this reality series.

If you’re in the minority of people who still don’t know what this series is all about, here’s a quick rundown. A group of people in their 20s from New Jersey, New York, and Rhode Island are picked out at random by MTV to share a beach house over the summer.

The place to be is the Jersey shore, and the town is Seaside Heights, a vacation destination where these NJ and Staten Island residents love to spend their weekends.

This has become one of those shows where you’re simply amazed by the antics you witness on a week to week basis. There’s romance drama, fighting, and a ton of comedy that will be sure to have you laughing.

If you’re still catching up on episodes, don’t read this article as it may contain spoilers. Otherwise, let’s go into a few of the most memorable moments from the season so far.

Two housemates, Sammy and Ronnie, have ended up falling in love with each other. This was very unexpected, as in the first episode, Ronnie had claimed that the last thing anyone should do at the Jersey Shore is fall in love. The two of them seem to be head over heels for one another.

Then, a recent episode with Vinnie, another member of the cast, brought some more surprise and suspense. While he was out at night, he ended up wandering off with an older woman. What he didn’t realize was that this woman was the date of the man whose house they’re living in. Needless to say, this didn’t sit well with Vinnie, who was sure that he’d be kicked out of the shore house.

Lastly, the fighting is a fixture on this show. In fact, you’d be hard pressed to find an episode that doesn’t involve some kind of a physical altercation. Not only do the men on the show find themselves in fights, but the women go at it too. This makes for some very wild television.

The cast members of this show have literally become overnight celebrities due to this reality show’s success. What happens from here should be very interesting.

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The Most Underrated Music Groups Of The 70s

Friday, June 25th, 2010

When I think back to the greatest decades in music history, the 1970s always make the top of my list. I know that people tend to wrongly put the past on a pedestal, and they definitely do this with music.

When it comes to the music from this decade, they’re right though. This was a special era in the history of music that I really appreciate, and I know that I’m not alone in my opinion about this.

What I like most about the 1970s is the fact that seeds were planted by many bands for the music that’s shaped the modern day scene. Two of the bands that I’ll be focusing on in this article were more influential than people realize.

One of the most underrated bands in rock history is the band that was actually known by that name. The Band was a group with a unique sound for the time, and their name comes from the fact that they used to be Bob Dylan’s backup band.

As far as their sound goes, this Canadian band perfectly blended classic rock and country folk, becoming one of the first groups to emulate such a sound. One of their songs that you might be familiar with is Cripple Creek.

The second band that I’d like to discuss is Electric Light Orchestra, more commonly known as ELO. I believe that Jeff Lynne is one of the most underrated songwriters in the history of music.

Perhaps the song that receives the most airplay these days is Mr. Blue Sky, also extremely popular in movies and on commercials. The fact that so much of the band’s music is still played over 30 years later is a testament to how influential their music was.

ELO’s sound was truly unique for the time. They were the first rock band to blend the sounds of a symphony orchestra with rock and roll. On top of that, they used futuristic sounds that made the band seem light years ahead of many others.

About this author: Aside from music, this writer also frequently writes on vessel sink cabinets and glass vessel sink