Amber doesn't believe in hate

This is the promo EPK video for the upcoming new single by Amber, which is "I Don't Believe In Hate (Drip Drop)." This video goes into the process on how the single was selected and recorded. There will also be a music video to this, which is supposed to come out later this month.

I've heard samples of "I Don't Believe In Hate" (which you can hear on her MySpace page) and they sound HOT. The vocal use of the "drip drop" reminds me of the "Li Da Di" scat-singing bits in her hit "Sexual." I can imagine the US dance outlets going crazy over this. The song was written by Kelly Mueller and was produced by her longtime producer Wolfram Dettki. There are remixes by Pathos V2 (the name Dettki uses for his remixes) and Yinon Yahel.

"I Don't Believe In Hate (Drip Drop)" will be internationally released on most digital store outlets on July 21. There will also be a limited edition five track physical CD, which you can order a personally autographed copy through her website (Perfect Beat will also be selling a limited amount of copies as well).

Hard Fail

One year ago today Madonna's most recent album Hard Candy was released in the US (it came out internationally the day before) with the intention of reestablishing herself on the US pop market. US radio stations had pretty much had not been playing the singles off her last two albums American Life and Confession On A Dancefloor so it was decided that Madonna would work the biggest producers in hip-hop-hop such as Timbaland (and his boy bitch Justin Timberlake) and Pharrel to get the rap-mad US Top 40 radio stations to play her music.

Unfortuneately Hard Candy wound up not getting the desired effect. The first single "4 Minutes" would go to number 3 on the US pop chart, but it pratically had to be disguised as a Timberland/Timberlake single to do that--even with the single getting increased US radio airplay in comparison to her last several singles, it was download sales of the single that was fueling its chart position (like "Hung Up" and "Sorry" before it), not the airplay.

The following singles "Give It 2 Me" and "Miles Away" failed to get the US radio airplay. The Paul Oakenfold remix of "Give it" did get to #57 on US Billboard's Hot 100 Chart for one week, but again it was download sales fueling its position. The following week the track fell off the chart.

While the album did debut at #1 on the US album chart with sales of 280,000 copies, it wound up being a commercial disappointment with as of this writing 714,000 copies in America. It would be the first major studio Madonna album not to go Platinum in the US, even with "4 Minutes (To Get My Music Back On Clear Channel)" being a Top 5 hit. (Compare that to the sales of her last CD Confession On A Dancefloor; with its first week US sales of 350,000 copies and a total of over 1.6 millions sold in her home country.)

That lack of success could be partially blamed the lack of aggressive promo in the US by both Madonna and her record company Warner Brothers. This would be the first era where she did not bother to appear on any TV show to perform a current single. (Imagine the extra album and download sales if she had appeared on Saturday Night Live, The Tonight Show, or American Idol--considering that the last show was doing its current season at the same time Hard Candy came out, it was a blown opprotunity.) She did do three promo tour gigs that were webcastted, including one in New York, but the exposure was limited in compared to a TV show performance, so she was basiclly playing to the hard-core fans. And in the interviews she gave during this period, the music more often that not wound up taking a back seat to other issues like directing movies, helping poor Africans, and the like; another blown opprotunity to tell about the new album she had out.

Even though it was likely that Warner Brothers influenced Madonna to do a hip-hop-pop album since they wanted something that could get onto US 40 radio, (the Pet Shop Boys were initally asked by the record company to write and produce some of that album, but were quickly uninvited; "We got told to forget it as they decided to shove her down the R&B route," said Neil Tennant), the company also wound up dropping the ball on promoting it as well. While Madonna was recording hard Candy in late 2007, she announced her departure from Warner Bros. Records and a new $120 million, ten year contract with Live Nation, which included a recording contract with Live nation's new label, once her contract with Warner Brother was completed. One can imagine Warners Brothers getting pissy at turning down their offer to stay at the label and signing with Live Nation. So the results was that both Madonna and Warners did not really feel excited about this album and that would have a negative effect on its promotion. Given that the label (along with the rest of the record industry) having to dealing with falling album sales and to have gotten another US pop hit single from Hard Candy would have been some help financally. Instead they got cranky at the Madonna/Live Nation deal and cut off their nose to spite their face.

Hard Candy would be the first major Madonna album to produce less than three music videos. Looking at the video to her second single "Give It 2 Me," one can see the result of the disconnect between her and record company, and neither side winding up to put some effort and care to it, making it look like something that Britney Spears would have knocked off in a few hours. And by that time Madonna was moving away from her boxing/pro-wrestling look that was featrued on her album cover and her video "4 Minutes," which wouldn't be much help to record sales. If "Give" was a better made video with Madonna retaining that boxer look--something in the league of something like the Pointer Sisters' "Dare Me," it would brought the single better exposure in the US. And there would no video for "Miles Away" period; when it was starting to look like it was not going to be a US radio hit, it was decdied that it wouldn't be worth the money and effort to do one.

And Madonna's personal life at that time was no help. Her brother Christopher Ciccone released a tell-all book that July. Her marriage to Guy Ritchie was falling apart and they would divorce that fall. She also made some public appearances looking quite haggard.

That summer she also was preparing for the Sticky & Sweet tour, which woukld start that August and go on into December, so she was more into working on that tour instead of focusing on further promoting the album. With record sales falling, it she figured she could make more money by touring instead.

Poor Madonna. IMHO she sold her artistic dance-music soul, but the album wound up not selling in her home country. Hard Candy was an album that was more expensive to make than Confession On A Dancefloor (considering said big-name R&B producers) but wound up selling less than half of the previous studio album. An album that was meant to restore Madonna's status on the current US pop music scape, but it wound up diminishing her clout even further instead. Instead of looking frssh like a daisy, she instead would look like a worn-out prositute with her wrestling oufit looking a couple of sizes too small that she wore on the cover of Hard Candy.

Let's hope once her contract with Warner Brothers ends with the release of a "greatest hits" collection this fall, she'll be free to make an album without having the commercial pressure to conform to what's being passing for pop music on American radio these days.

Don't Be Jealous Of My Boogie!

I love this video clip of the new RuPaul single "Don't Be Jealous Of My Boogie," which is from his new album Champion.

The description of this hilar clip on the YouTube page it's from tells it better than I could:

"The brief was simple. Ru was inspired by the techno mash-up phenomenon currently sweeping Japan, whereby kids are splicing old gay porno footage of Billy Herrington with mad Japanese graphics, plus the occasional baby head to cover any exposed goodies.

"A fairly typical assignment for World of Wonder, we speed-dialed our friends over at Vivid for some Tommy Gunn porno footage, which genius editor Justin Hurvitz cut together with Ru, plus some of Steven Corfe's ace graphics thrown in for good measure."

Happy Ethel Merman Disco Album Day!

I've posted about The Ethel Merman Disco Album three years ago on this very day. So today I'd like to present a clip of Ethel going on The Tonight Show in 1979 to sing "Alexander's Ragtime Band" from that imfamous album. Love the wah-wah "Shaft"-like guitar strumming on this version!

Fave Sex and the City Music Part 1

Since the new Sex and the City movie is now out (I haven't seen it yet, but I do plan to see it later this week), here's a clip featuring the concluding minutes from the Season 3 finale of "Cock a Doodle Do!" Notice that the song playing in the background is "Above The Clouds" by Amber.



Amber's "Above The Clouds" was featured as the opening track to her 1999 album Amber. It was the follow-up single to her Top 40-crossover hit "Sexual." It didn't have the same pop crossover action as "Sexual," but it did top Billboard's Club Play Chart. Here Amber performs "Above the Clouds" at Much Music in Toronto back in 2000.

"Above The Clouds" was remixed by several DJs, most noticeably by Thunderpuss.

BTW a couple of years later Amber would write a song titled "Sex and the City" but it would not be used in the TV series, though it did wind up on her 2002 album Naked. She also more recently attempted to put the song on the new SATC motiom picture soundtrack, even suggested that Jennifer Hudson record it for the film, but that didn't happen either. You can currently hear that track up on her MySpace page, and read about it on her blog there.

Hot Candy Mess

Okay the new Madonna album Hard Candy finally came out on Tuesday. So far after a few listens I'm 50/50 on it. Better than I thought it would be, but still I think that this is one of her weaker albums. It's a little too slavishly faithful to the hip-hop-pop formula for my tastes. The tracks that comes off the best IMHO are the ones that stray the furthest from that formula.

There has been some comparisons between this album and Bedtime Stories, and I think that they are kind of off. While both employed up-to-the-minute "urban" producers, the two have very different vibes. BS has a smooth, laid-back vibe, while HC goes in the opposite direction with a more assertive, in-your-face, and "hard" feeling. Plus when Madonna did Bedtime Stories she pretty much could do whatever she wanted she could get US radio airplay. That's no longer the case given in the past few years the Hot 100 chart positions of singles like "Hung Up" and "American Life" were more fueled singles and download sales rather than airplay. With Hard Candy, Madonna clearly wants to have a US radio hit and she's more than willing--desperate even--to submerge her own identity in the shadow of the name hip-hop producers in order to get some airtime along with the Pussycat Dolls of the US airwaves.

Here's my impression of the tracks:

1. Candy Shop - It's an improvement on the leaked version that came out last year, but still it's a bit of a weak kick-off for the album, and the candy-as-sex theme has already used in pop/rap records in the past couple of years, such as 50 Cent's "Candy Shop," Mika's "Lollipop," and most recently,Lil Wayne's "Lollipop." Though I think that given the type of songs that get played on US pop radio these days, if this becomes a single, it will become mind-numbingly big on the US charts.

2. 4 Minutes - I've kind of warmed up to this, but I still think that it's a hot mess. This would have worked better if Madonna had done this as a solo record instead of a duet with Justin Timberlake/Timbaland. With all three singing lead it becomes a bit too much.

3. Give It 2 Me - Not a bad choice for the second single. This is Madge's version of "Maneater," only with a more synthy sound. Funny considering that this track actually was produced by Pharrell Williams, not by Timbaland who produced that Nelly Futardo single.

4. Heartbeat - would have made a better impression on me if there was less of that hippity-hoppity-clappity production.

5. Miles Away - This is probably my favorite song the album. It sounds like something from the American Life era, only it's filtered through Timbaland.

6. She's Not Me - With a joyous vibe that harks back to her debut album, this would have been great if it was edited down to four minutes. At 6+ minutes it a bit of a drag.

7. Incredible - Also could have been edited down to 3-4 minutes as well.

8. The Beat Goes On - The album version no longer sounds the knock-off of Justin's "Like I Love You" like the leaked version was last year, but still it's not all that interesting. Not worthy single material.

9. Dance 2night - Another duet with Timberlake. The track that uses the most hip-hop-pop cliches and ends up being the creative nadir of the album IMHO.

10. Spanish Lesson - Pharrell Williams gets all Evita. Nuf said.

11. Devil Wouldn't Recognize You - The devil should have edited this one down instead; it too drags at its 5+ minute length.

12. Voices - This track reminds me of that Paul Oakenfold remix of Mark Ronson/Daniel Merriweather's "Stop Me" with its moody synths over the drum loop. Still, this closer is one of the highlights of the album for me.

Madonna clearly wants to make Hard Candy her "ghetto pass" back to US pop radio. And she might end up getting that. Oh well at least she's getting some air time with "4 Minutes (To Get My Music Back Onto Clear Channel)", though it seems Top 40 radio's interest in that track has already peaked by now. As someone who loved her last album Confessions On A Dance Floor, I just wish that she didn't have to "sell out" her artistic instincts by conforming to what Clear Channel determines what is an acceptable pop song in the 2000's.

Friday Video music updates

A couple of updates on a couple of acts featured in my Friday Video segments:

Yazoo, or Yaz as they're known in the States, has just announced they have extended their reunion tour by adding some dates in North America later this summer. I'm hoping that there will be a Philly date, or at least a couple in New York.

Last week I mentioned about Capitol Records's indesicion on what would be the first US single off of Kylie Minogue's X album. Well they've chosen "All I See" as the first US single. Not a bad choice really--I remember listening to this when X first came out back in November thinking that it sounded like something that the US label would pick to get on US radio. Lyrics are kind of a bunch of cliches but of course this is aimed at the Clear Channel radio stations which are not exactly a hotbed of musical sophisication. Nice understated delivery by Kylie that makes it worth listening to. (Though I still stand by my decision that "Sensitize" would have made a better US single.)

Hedging their bets on getting US radio airplay, the company is releasing a rent-a-rapper remix (how innovative...not!) of "All I See" featuring Mims, best known for his US hit single "This Is Why I'm Hot." (He's also featured on a remix of Enur's "Calabria 2007," which is currently rising on the US pop charts.):

You Tube clip of Kylie feat. Mims - "All I See"

IMHO the remix sounds quite forced and it doesn't really add anything to the song (outside of getting US radio programmers's attention); rather it destroys any subtilies the song has. I hope that that the US top 40 stations will ignore this remix and just go for the original album version instead.

"All I See" will be released in North America on March 11.

Friday Video #67: More Kylie

Last week (February 12) Kylie Minogue's X album finally got released in the U.S., but it's just being digitally released on iTunes and other legal download outlets. It was also supposed to be released as a physical CD, but it seems to be pushed back to March now. Considering that Kylie's US label Capitol haven't even clearly decided what song will be as the first single in this country at this point, so it wouldn't be surprising if they cancel plans for putting out a physical CD. It's a shame considering that X is a joy to listen to.



Anyway this is the video to "Wow," the second UK and Australian single from her album. It was directed by Melina Matsoukas. While I do like this song, I think that there are better tracks off the album that would make better singles than this. Anyway, this video reminds me of her classic "Spinning Around" clip, which both videos take place in a nightclub; only "Wow" uses more vibrabt colors.

BTW I heard through some Kylie fan forum boards that this was going to be the first single, but so far the track hasn't been sent out to the various US dance radio outlets, nor has its mixes been put up on US iTunes.



Now here is the video to "In My Arms," which was released as the second single to other European countries. It was also directed by Melina Matsoukas, who filmed both videos in Los Angeles in early Janurary 2008. Better choice for a single than "Wow." Love the 80s new wave retro-look she's sporting here!



If I had to make a choice of what was going to be the first US single, I would have to pick "Sensitized." It wouldn't sound out of place with all that R&B and hip-hop on US pop radio right now, but it still retains its own identity. Here is Kylie performing the song on her The Kylie Show TV special, which aired in the UK late last year. (She recycles her infamous European Agent Provocateur commerical with the broncing bronco.)

One more thing, Kylie has been doing some promo for the album in the US anyway; here she is making a stopover at Perez Hilton (not really a fan of his but hey, promo is promo at this point). Hey Capitol, get a clue!

Friday Video #66: Dancing Free Until The Morning Light

On Tuesday February 12, dance pop singer Amber released her latest single "This Is Your Night 2008," which is a re-recording of her 1996 hit. The new version was produced and remixed by Pathos V2 (a/k/a Wolfram Dettki, who has produced her last two albums). Amber said that she decided to re-record the song was because she got a lot of requests for it but the original version was held up by red tape with Warner Brothers, which currently owns the song (and her albums up until Amber Remixed). The new version of "This Is Your Night" is worth giving a listen to; it's got some nice spacey/trancey elements to it.

Above is the new video for "This Is Your Night 2008). It was directed by Rob Graydon.



I thought that I'd also include the video to the original version of "This Is Your Night" as well. Here it looked liked the people who made that video had seen some of Kylie Minogue's early 90's videos like "Better The Devil You Know" and decided to make it like that.

"This Is Your Night" would be the biggest pop hit for Amber in the US--it reached #24 on Billboard's Hot 100 chart.

"This Is Your Night 2008" is now availible as a legal download on digital sites on iTunes and Amazon.com.

Friday Video #61: Pretty Poison

It was twenty years ago this month that "Catch Me (I'm Falling)" by the Philly band Pretty Poison peaked at #8 on Billboard's Hot 100 chart. The single was originally released on the band's own label Svengali Records back in April 1987 and it wound being a hit on the local radio stations like Power 99 and Hot Hits 98 that summer. Virgin Records took notice and signed theact and then re-released the single that fall. It would also go to #1 on Billboard's Hot Dance Club Play chart.

Here is a clip of Pretty Poison performing the track on the USA Network TV show Dance Party USA. It originated from Philadelphia, based on a local program on WWPHL-TV called Dancin' On Air.

Friday Video #56: Love Kylie X4

I am so looking forward to the new Kylie Minogue album X, which will be coming out internationally on November 26. The following clip pretty much shows why I am. Here is Kylie performing "The One" on her television special The Kylie Show, which was aired in Great Britian earlier this month.

"The One" was co-produced by the Freemasons, who has done some great remix work such as Beyonce's "Ring The Alarm" and the Beyonce/Shakira duet "Beautiful Liar." Kylie just radiates sunniness and warmth here. I hope that this will chosen as a future single. It reminds me a bit of Gwen Stefani's "Cool" (which in turn reminds me of New Order).

X won't be released in America until February of next year, so I've order an import copy from Australia. As I've said in a previous post, stupid US label.

Friday VIdeo #55: Supermodel

15 years ago tomorrow--November 17, 1992--RuPaul's single "Supermodel (You'd Better Work)" was released. It would reach #2 on the Billboard Dance Chart and #45 on the Billboard Hot 100 in early 1993. It would become RuPaul's best known song. Here is the original video. There's also a 12" version of this video as well.



RuPaul would rerecord "Supermodel" in 2006 as "Supermodel 2006." The video here features behind-the-scenes footage of his latest movie Starrbooty. The track can also be found on his ReWorked remix album.

Friday Video #54: Queer Eye Anastacia

I'm currently working on my next PhillyGayCalendar column, which will be up next week. It will focus on the pop culture image of the gay man helping out straights, or what I'd like refer to as "the good fairy." The TV show Queer Eye For The Straight Guy is the best example of this. As I was doing some research for this article, I came across a YouTube clip of the show's fashion guy Carson Kressley miming to the Thunderpuss remix of Anastacia's "Love Is A Crime." This was shot at a taping of the show where a "Straight Guy Pageant" was held; former guys who were helped on the show were brought back to see who had kept up with their makeovers and who hadn't. The one who did the best job keeping up was crowned "Ultimate Straight Guy." This show was taped back in 2006 but it wasn't aired until October 2007.

Sometimes it just take a fairy belting out a disco tune.

Friday Video #47: Calvin Harris

One of my favorite songs from this summer would have to be "Acceptable in the 80s" by Scottish electronic singer-songwriter Calvin Harris. It's a catchy and fun electro-pop ditty that pays tribute to that decade. His debut album I Created Disco has been out in Europe since June and will be released in North America on September 10. He also has been recording with Kylie Minogue for her upcoming album as well. Above is the video to "Acceptable in the 80s." Below is the video to his latest UK single "Merrymaking at My Place," which reminds me a bit of LCD Soundsystem's "Daft Punk Is Playing In My House." You can also see more of his videos on his YouTube page as well.

Friday VIdeo #44: BearForce1

Meet what's claimed as "the world's first bearband," BearForce1. Already their video of their first single, which is a medley of 80s Euro-dance-pop hits, has gotten a lot of buzz on the gay blogosphere. Kind of cheesy, but it's fun!

Friday Video #43: She's Homeless

Designer Jay McCarroll, the first season winner of Project Runway, was one of the people featured in a new article by New York Magazine on what happens to Bravo reality show contestants after their fifteen minutes are up. It declared that Jay was "homeless." He said that “I haven’t been living anywhere for two years...I sleep at other people’s houses. I sleep here [in my studio] if I’m drunk.”

The same day the article came out, a video was posted on YouTube where Jay, wearing a tacky wig and mismatched outfit, wanders the streets of NYC carrying a sign that says "Will Design For Food." To the tune of Crystal Waters' "Gypsy Woman (She's Homeless)." Reality TV stars can have a sense of humor!

UPDATE: Page Six of the New York Post reaveled that Jay's comments to New York magazine were meant to be sarcastic. A friend said that “Jay is not homeless. He lives in a beautiful building on the Upper West Side, and has recently been tapped to head up the re-launch of classic ’80s sportswear brand Camp Beverly Hills, and also has his own line and show premiering on QVC this fall.”

Friday Video #42: Deee-Lite

Fifteen years ago the soundtrack of my summer was Deee-lite's Infinity Within, the follow-up to their 1990 hit album World Clique (which included "Groove Is In The Heart"). The album, released in June 1992, had their usually good house beats, but this time around they were starting to give interviews that they wanted to write material that had a message as well, like "We're not just marshmellows, we really care." This turned up in a few songs here, including ones on safe sex ("Rubber Lover," which had a good techno/rave beat that was all the rage that summer), the corruption of the judicial system ("Fuddy Duddy Judge"), the enviroment ("I Had A Dream I Was Falling Through A Hole In The Ozone Layer," which was actually a leftover from the World Clique sessions) and the voting public service announcement("Vote Baby Vote"). Reviews of the album focused on those songs at the expense of the other songs of the disc, which gave the appearance that Deee-Lite was starting to get preachy. Actually they had some "fun" stuff as well"--"Pussycat Meow" was a fun techno-pop romp in the same league as "What Is Love?" from their previous album. "Electric Shock" was a mellow house number that was great to play on a rainy day, amd "Two Clouds Above Nine" had some good ragga-chanting. Also a lot was written about the CD being originally issued in an "eco-pack" that was mostly paper packaging that the customer folded into the shape of a digpack CD case once purchased. (Remember when CD's were being sold in cardboard longboxes that you just threw away when you've opened it?)

The video shown here, "Runaway," was the first single from Infinity Within. Even though the video did get some airplay on MTV and BET and the song did get to #1 on Billboard's Dance chart, it failed to cross over to the pop charts. Two more singles ("Thank You Everyday" and "Pussycat Meow") would be released but just appeared on the dance charts as well. Deee-Lite would release one more album before breaking up in 1996. Vocalist Lady Miss Kier is now DJing these days, including a gig she did at the opening party of the Philadelphia Gay and Lesbian Film Festival last month.

Note near the end of this video you can also hear a snippet of the first track from Infinity Within, "I.F.O.(Identified Flying Object)." Also notice Miss Kier's resembling a little bit like Bridget Bardot-gone-beatnik here, as opposed to the Mary Tyler Moore-circa-1962-gone-pyschedelic look from the "Groove Is In The Heart" days.

Friday Video #31: Verka Serduchka at Eurovision

Can a drag queen from the Ukraine become a sensation in Europe? Well Verka Serduchka has done just that. Last weekend at the Eurovision Song Contest 2007 she performed an accordian techno number titled "Dancing Lasha Tumbai" and it went over very well--it finished in second place. A fun goofy number indeed. (First place went to "Molitva" by Marjia Serifovic from Seria, who's an out lesbian.)

Speaking of Eurovision, NBC has bought the US rights to the show and now is developing World Vision: An American Anthem. If the American version does get off the ground, could this mean that there's a chance a drag queen or out gay person could win or place highly in the contest like they can in the European original version? Hopefully there can be a slight better chance than, say, American Idol (Hello, pink elephant in the room called Clay Aiken)!

Is it just pop music?

I guess I can somtimes take it way too personal at times when musical acts I like aren't commercially successful, or they're not successful enough and go to desperate measures to keep their music career going at the expense of the actual music. Take Madonna for example: her last album Confessions On A Dance Floor was my favorite album from 2005 and it went on to sell 1.7 million copies in the US alone (which is pretty good considering today's declining music sales). But the singles from that album didn't click that much with US pop radio which was (and continues to be) driven by hip-hop. So now Madonna is working with rap producers like Timbaland and Pharrel Williams for her next album, since she now wants a hit record on American radio badly--America is still going through a long night of dispair that Bush and 9-11 brought upon it and considers that bouncy house and techno songs are too frivolous for the national mood. And now I heard that Madonna is so desperate for that "ghetto pass" to US radio that she's working with Justin Timberlake now. Ick, now that's someone who's likely to take her back to gauche soy latte territory in that "American Life" single, since Justin tries way too hard to overcome his past as a Mickey Mousekateer and a boy-band member by doing things like hiring rappers by the busload and "confessing" in an interview that's timed just before his latest album comes out that he's dabbled in drugs in order to gain a "bad-ass" repuatation.

On her Confessions album Madge wrote two songs ("Let It Will Be" and "How High") cmplaining about how fame isn't all that cracked up to be. Those songs now look like a case of "the lady protests too much," since she's made a calculated musically career move that's meant to keep fame up and running (at least to the Clear Channel crowd). As the Divine Ms. Jimmi once said about her: "If you mean it, shave your head, find a secluded moutain-top to hide on and then never come back. If it weren't for fame and your fans you would have to get a real job."

I'll likely end up buying the album when it comes out anyway. I just wish that she'd keep up the uplifting dance stuff for a little longer and not sell out to scowling rappers. Too many songs on the radio catering to that sound already.


One album I've been enjoy as of late is Lily Allen's Alright, Still. I think that it's a really good, sassy album, full of wit and humor, and it that puts like the like of Avril Lavignes of the US pop charts to shame. (Her single "Smile" has gotten some airplay on the local Top 40 radio station Q102, which usually "thugs out" on nothing but rap and R&B. God, some good music on that station for a change.) So I was disappointed that it was announced earlier this month that she was cancelling most of the dates of her May-June US tour because she was "tired." (She'll still do a few selected gigs here, such as her appearance at the Coachella festival this past weekend.) Maybe her management should have better planned ber tour in advance, since a long tour can wear a Brit band down, considering the size of this country. It gives the appearence to the US that she's just another Brit pop star who acts like a crybaby tittysucker when it comes to touring America (thinking that you just need to play New York City and L.A. to make it big here) and that she's blowing her chance at pop stardom in America. Oh well, it was nice while it lasted.

I know that it's all just pop music and that I shouldn't take it personally. But I still do. On one hand I like to sprout my individual musical tastes and on the other I like to see said tastes be affirmed by pop culture. Quite a contradiction in my life indeed.

Blue Ball 2007 DJs

The latest editiom of my PhillyGayCalendar.com column is up and running, where I talk about the DJs who will be spinning at this year's Blue Ball, which is Philadelphia's biggest circuit party of the year. I interview three of the DJs on this year's bill: DJ Roland Belmares, DJ Zathan, and DJ Carl Michaels. This installment is the longest article I've wriiten for the website so far.