ARTIST OF THE MONTH MAY 2014: Lana Del Rey

It's official! Artist of the Month for May 2014 is the sultry Lana Del Rey! Her new album "Ultraviolence" is released early June so that gives her a whole month to shine prior to the album's release!
Expect news, reviews and quizzes throughout May related to Lana Del Rey as well her totally taking over the appearance of the blog!

Listen to Lana Del Rey's new single "West Coast here!

Why Kelis was a great Artist of the Month

Well it's that time again! May begins tomorrow and therefore a new artist will take the spotlight for a month! But before I reveal who the new artist is lets take a look at some reasons why Kelis was a great Artist of the Month!

• Kelis like Shakira isn't afraid to experiment with genres in her music. Her tracks contain elements of hip hop, R&B, rock and dance. 
• Kelis is a loving mother, her son Knight was born in 2009. She has recently claimed she doesn't want him exploited by the media. 
• To promote her brand new album "Food" she took a food truck to a music festival and cooked and served free gourmet dishes to the attendees! 
• On top of her music Kelis has a passion for cooking and has trained as a saucier. 
• She has toured with the likes of Robyn and Britney Spears as well as collaborating with huge names in the music industry such as Andre 3000 and will.i.am. 

Well Kelis certainly has a wide range of skills and talents but who do you think will become the new Artist of the Month for May 2014? Come back later to find out! 

MUSIC VIDEO REVIEW: Wanna Control Myself- Florrie

Well it's finally here! The final music video from "Flawless Florrie's" EP "Sirens". This music video is for the track "Wanna Control Myself" and it's another visual masterpiece.
This music video takes a more sinister turn than the other videos from the "Sirens" EP. The track itself is pretty dark and spooky as is the video. It shows Florrie in dark streets, in dark arcades, just in darkness in general. Everything is dim and low toned to create a real sinister and troubled vibe.
The icing on the dark cake is Florrie's male partner. Unlike the guy in the "Free Falling" video this one actually looks pretty innocent however that innocence comes across as really quite deadly, a bit like a panda.
On top of that the wardrobe is great as usual as is the retro car Florrie is seen driving!
All in all a great video to end the "Sirens" EP era, now I'm just looking for an album!

What do you think of this video? Comment below to share your thoughts.

Check out the video here!
Check out my review for Florrie's track Seashells
Check out my review for Florrie's track Free Falling

SINGLE OF THE WEEK: Breakfast (Syrup)- Kreayshawn

This week's Single of the Week goes to Kreayshawn and her track "Breakfast (Syrup)". This track comes from her debut studio album "Somethin' 'Bout Kreay" released in 2012. Kreayshawn's musical style is primarily rap but there are bubblegum pop elements in there that work really well together to create a sassy type of hip hop. Previously she was part of a group called White Girl Mob alongside Lil' Debbie and V Nasty.
This track features rapper 2 Chainz and to be honest, it's really catchy! Definitely go check out the track here!

Lily Allen launches humorous search engine

Well the Lily Allen "Sheezus" campaign has been pretty cool so far but also pretty offensive if you're a really successful female artist. With the release of diss tracks such as "Hard Out Here" and "Sheezus" it's pretty clear Allen has a dissatisfaction with today's pop culture, a bit like me in high school to be honest.

But Lily Allen has taken things to an even cooler and probably more offensive level. On her website she has launched a cool search engine on her official website allowing easy navigation to find Lily Allen related posts, which is really cool. However it also gives some funny suggestions as illustrated. Unfortunately many of the suggestions have now been removed as it may come back to bite her. Oh well, it was fun while it lasted!

Check out the search engine here!

What do you think of the "Sheezus" campaign? Is it honest or offensive? Comment below to share your thoughts.

Katy Perry- Birthday: MUSIC VIDEO REVIEW

Well Katy Perry's released another cracker of a music video! This one comes in the form of "Birthday" the fourth single from her album "PRISM".
The video shows Katy Perry dressed up as various eccentric characters who appear to be party entertainers but to be honest, are really crap at their jobs and cause more disturbance than entertainment.
However the video is insanely brilliant. It's out of the box and it has some cracker lines from some of the characters. Katy Perry shows off her charisma and ability to portray several characters at opposite ends of the spectrum.
While the video may seem odd or cheesy you can't criticise her imagination and the kind-heartedness of the video when she reveals her superstar identity at one of the parties.
I think this video will go down like marmite. You'll either love it or hate it, but I for one certainly love it!

Watch the music video here!

INTERVIEW with Anne Horel

This week the fantastic Anne Horel is Single of the Week. Anne Horel is an artist, musician, actress and cat caretaker so to find out more about her many talents I decided to interview her! So prepare to find out all about the Paris-based superwoman!

Q: For those of us who don’t know much about Anne Horel, describe yourself in 5 words. 

A: Internet- addict

GIF maker

Awesomeness enthusiast

Speak fluent Emoji

Born-in-the-80s-raised-in-the-90s.

Q: You’re a woman of many talents, as we will discover throughout this interview. What is a typical day like for you and where do you find the time to do everything you do? 

A: I work from home. So my typical day is to wake up, check emails & social medias, hang out with my cat, dig the Internet, GIF, eat cheese and GIF again. Also, the secret is probably that I don’t sleep very much and that I consider myself lucky to do what I love to do. That’s a choice, not an easy one to make, but it gives me freedom. And that is something I couldn’t give up on.

Q: Your musical style is quite electronic and modern. Which artists would you say have inspired that sound? 

A: I’ve always been really eclectic in my tastes in general.  There is so much good stuff everywhere and I’m always curious to discover it. I’ve always been addicted to music. 

I was born in the 80s and grew up in the 90s. I grew up surrounded with many different kinds of music. It's complicated for me to say who influenced me the most, because it’s the plurality that inspires me.

But if I’d have to classify my music, I would say it’s a mix between synth pop, dance music and rap.

Q: Your song, “I’m A Floating Being” is currently Single of the Week. What was your inspiration behind that track?

A: It is the beginning of everything. The genesis. And it was so unexpected.

I studied Art for 5 years in Paris. The 3rd year, I was dragged by a friend in a sound workshop. 

At this time, it was the beginning of my work on social medias, and I was collecting group names on Facebook. 

So I thought of making a song with those groups names. I’ve actually made 3 others after this one, all called « I’m a floating being », gathered in an EP called « Anne Horel sings Facebook », 2 electro-inspired in collaboration with my friend Vincent Hénon, 2 piano-inspired in collaboration with my uncle. 

I’ve worked with Vincent ever since.

The most important thing is that when I’ve started making songs, I realised it was the best medium I could use to do everything I love gathered at the same place: writing, music, video, graphics, fashion, performance, development of a virtual body double character of myself.

Life is amazing. Things always happen for a reason.

Q: Your songs are bilingual in French and English. How long have you studied English for and if you could would you study another language?  

A: My first English class was with my elder sister. She was a huge Beatles fan and taught me English with the Beatles lyrics when I was 7. Even since, I’ve always loved speaking and learning English. I’ve studied it also at the university, and never stopped learning vocabulary, trying to practice as much as I can.

I think the best way to learn a language is to live in the country for a while. To not only learn language, but also being surrounded by the culture. So, I would love to spend some time in Japan to learn Japanese, and go back to Turkey. I’ve spent a lots of time in Istanbul when I was younger, and I love this city.

Q: Which musical artists would you like to collaborate with if you had the chance? 

A: My craziest dream would be to work with Miley Cyrus. To make her music videos and work on the visual animations she displays on stage. 

But basically, the list of people I would love to work with is long because every time I really love somebody’s work, I instantly want to work with them. Among them: Die Antwood, Of Montreal, Kap Bambino, Diplo, Yuksek, Django Django, Toxic Avenger, La Femme, Jackson and his Computerband, …pff and so many others…

I’d love to make music videos, GIFs and graphics for them. That would make me really happy.

Q: On top of your music you also produce some amazing graphic design work, such as GIFs for vine users and your own music videos. Where do you gather your inspiration for these amazing art pieces?

A: My inspiration takes its source in the Internet iconography. Tumblr is my home, I spend a lots of time collecting images, scrolling down on blogs, YouTube and Vine profiles. My brains & my hands do the rest. 

Q: Your GIFs are clearly full of expression and personality. Are there any other cool ways in which you express yourself?

A: :))) Haha! Well I do a lot of things. And it’s all part of my process and it evolves constantly with different tools. 

I have my own Radio show on a web radio based in Paris. In this show I invite people to talk about digital & web culture. The idea is to promote my guests by promoting things they like. Because this is one of the things I really love about the Internet: how people share what they like and how it spreads. 

I also work for a TV show on Canal + « L’Œil de Links ». It is about creativity on the Internet. I love this job because it allows me to talk about talented people and share the enthusiasm I feel for them and their work.

But otherwise, I also love cooking, Yoga, Gym tonic & Tarots reading.

Q: Do you get a lot of requests for GIFs and art?

A: More and more. And it warms my heart a lot. I would like to make GIF all the time. This is my favorite thing. Ever.

Q: On top of your musical and graphic design work you also act in a quirky online series called “Greetings From Michigannehorel”. What can you tell us about that? 

A: It’s a musical web series in 6 episodes & 6 music videos that was crowd-funded last summer and which is online on YouTube now. Each episode borrows a different genre (road movie, thriller, horror movie, science fiction, sitcom and documentary). There is also a prologue episode which is a GIF fotonovela. It tells the story of my character who meets an american producer (played by Brian J. Bowe) that wants to land her career in Michigan. But of course nothing happens the way it was supposed to and the whole story is absolutely absurd. Each episode is  followed with a music video. 

Q: To add to your list of talents you’ve also appeared on a Radio Marais interviewing two of my favourite vine users, Nick Gallo and Simply Sylvio. What was that like?

A: It was great! I was really happy and honoured they accepted my invitation! I like them a lot and would love to make other projects with them. 

Q: What has been your favourite trend on vine? (e.g. smack cam, let me take a selfie etc.) 

A: If James White is to be considered as a trend (as I do believe), I would say James White, though :)

Q: Social media is highly important to you for your graphic design work and music promotion. If you could design your own social media site/app what would it be like?

A: That’s a really good question! Some people ask me what app I use to make my GIFs. So I would probably design an application to make weird GIFs with weird stamps. Like camemberts and axolotls. It might happen at some point anyway, that is something I’d like to do.

Q: If you could pick only one of your many talents to pursue, which one would you pick? 

A: Being myself, I guess. That might sound stupid but it’s a very challenging thing when you’re an artist. Not being corrupted by anything that would not be in harmony with yourself.

Q: Lastly is there anything you would like to say to your fans? 

A: That they mean everything to me. Every single comment, every single like, every single share is an amazing  way to support me. There are no words to express how grateful I am.

[END]

Well, a huge thanks to Anne for allowing me to interview her! If you want to explore the huge jungle that is Anne's career then follow the links below! 

Anne's YouTube Channel (where you can find her music and online series): CLICK IT!

Anne's vine (where you can view all her weird and wonderful GIFs): CLICK HERE!!

Anne's Twitter: @AnneHorel

Anne's Instagram: @AnneHorel 

SINGLE OF THE WEEK: I'm A Floating Being- Anne Horel

This week's quirky Single of the Week is that of Anne Horel, a Paris-based artist and musician!
Anne Horel is known online for her creation of wonderful and wacky GIFs that are shared over vine and other social media websites. However she also makes music! Her musical style is very quirky and electronic very similar to that of Yelle, who were last week's Single of the Week.
"I'm A Floating Being" is one of Anne's first tracks based on social media websites and it's a real treat! Listen to it and check out the fab video here!

If that wasn't enough to start your Anne Horel obsession, come back tomorrow and check out my interview with the woman herself, Anne Horel!


Cette semaine, Chanson De La Semaine est l’un de Anne Horel! Anne Horel est une artiste qui habite en Paris! Elle fait les GIFs merveilleux et bizarre que sont télécharger sur les sites de médias sociaux comme Vine. 
Cependant elle est une musicienne aussi. Son musical style est très électronique et  bizarre comme Yelle. « I’m A Floating Being » est l’un de les premières chansons d’Anne Horel au sujet de Facebook et c’est fantastique! Ecouter de la chanson ici! 

Aussi, lire mon interview avec Anne demain!  

ALBUM REVIEW: Kelis- FOOD

2 days to go until Kelis' brand new album "Food" is released in stores! Earlier this week the album was made available to stream on The Guardian's music blog and I think you're all in for a treat with this album! Here is my track by track review of the album!

1. Jerk Ribs
"Jerk Ribs" is the opening single and opening track. It's a quirky and spicy track that makes good use of trumpets and you really get a feel Kelis is cooking up something good here. The song makes a great opener to the album however I think it would be better suited as track 2 as track 2 makes a brilliant opener!

2. Breakfast
This track is very personal and has quite a gospel-like sound which I love. Kelis' vocals are top notch and I love how personal and emotional the track is. This track marks the beginning of a grown up and mature Kelis. It's definitely an album highlight!

3. Forever Be
Next we move onto the epic "Forever Be". It has a kind of Bastille-like sound with a nice use of violins. It's very retro and again features amazing soulful vocals from Kelis. It's another emotional and mature track and helps the mature image of this album progress even more! Another highlight for me, I've had it on repeat for ages!

4. Floyd
Next we take a quieter and darker turn. It's very slow paced and vintage and very similar to the works of Lana Del Rey but with a jazzier twist. It has a vintage cinematic feel to it. A real nostalgic track!

5. Runnin'
"Runnin'" is another dark hip hop like track. It's very bassy and does sound similar to some of her older stuff but with a much darker twist. It's also quite emotional in terms of lyrics. A real great track!

6. Hooch
This track is brilliant. It's really funky and retro and sounds quite like Mark Ronson's remix of The Kaiser Chief's "Oh My God". It has brilliant trumpets and a quick hip hop beat. Kelis' vocals also still prove amazing throughout this track.

7. Cobbler
A quirky and fun track displaying Kelis' soulful vocals even more. The track has a quick and really organic beat to it almost like a quick jam with some friends with pots and pans. However I think one of the highlights of this track is the choir at the bridge. WOOOOOW!

8. Bless The Telephone
One of the darker and sadder tracks from the album. It's slow and almost country-like and theres accompanying male vocals to make it even more personal.

9. Friday Fish Fry
A quirky western track with a similar beat to that of "Jerk Ribs". It also has a military march feel to it and the chorus erupts into a big rock out! Definitely an album highlight!

10. Change
A dark ancient Egyptian-like track. It's quite powerful and daunting but brilliant nonetheless!

11. Rumble
The second single from the album which is a folky and retro track. It has a good feel to it and is nice and calm. It continues this retro and soulful theme the album has taken in a great way.

12. Biscuits N' Gravy
I fell in love with this song after hearing it on the live EP Kelis released through amazon. What I like about it is that it's really climactic. It starts off quiet and quite acoustic and then nearer the end it erupts into a big powerful soulful ballad.

13. Dreamer
This track makes a nice sleepy ending to the album. It's very celestial and quite like a lullaby while also incorporating hip hop elements through the beat. A real unique track!

Overall I think you'll enjoy this album. It's soulful and jazzy sound is a real treat for Kelis fans as we get to see her take a different direction. Kelis has definitely cooked up a tasty treat for us all so here's hoping it gets the recognition it deserves!

10 things you didn't know about Kelis

Artist of the Month Kelis' 6th studio album Food drops this Monday but there are some pretty interesting things you may not know about the tasty treats lady!

1. The name Kelis is combination of her parents' names: Kenneth and Evelis!

2. At the age of 13 Kelis shaved off all her hair

3. Pharell Williams and Chad Hugo managed to get Kelis a record deal as a production duo named The Neptunes.

4. Kelis has a son named Knight who was born in 2009.

5. Kelis loved food and even wrote a cookbook with Lauren Pesavento

6. To promote her new album "Food", Kelis took a food truck to a music festival and worked in it serving gourmet dishes!

7. Kelis' mother Evelis is a Puerto-Rican and Chinese fashion designer.

8. Kelis has 3 sisters and is the third sibling out of the 4.

9. Kelis used to be signed to will.i.am's record label: will.i.am Music Group. Other artists on this label include Macy Gray, LMFAO and Natalia Kills.

10. French producer David Guetta produced her fifth studio album "Flesh Tone"

QUIZ: Guess the child star

How well do you know your idols? Would you recognise one if you their baby photos? Why not put that to the test with this brand new quiz!

1. She released her debut album in 2000 and then in 2004 changed her image completely making her a very controversial figure.

2. One of the most powerful voices of our generation. She started off on disney channel and has since released 7 studio albums all of which experiment with different genres from R&B to classical music to bubblegum pop.

3. Puerto-Rican superstar. She started off in acting and is about to release her 10th studio album! She's very good friends with Pitbull.

4. Australian sweetheart, started off acting in the Australian soap opera, Neighbours. She recently released her 12th studio album.

5. One of the most influential figures of our time. She began her career in 2008 and since then has released 3 albums. She also experiments with crazy outfits and music!

6. Number 5's rival. She used to be a very influential figure back in the 80s. Some of her lyrics include "Die bitch!" and "I'm like a girl gone wild!"

7. She began her career as a much loved Disney star but last year changed her image completely making her one of the most controversial figures of the year. Need I say more! 

8. Pop-punk diva. She's changed her hair colour many times and has released 6 albums. She's collaborated with the likes of Eminem, Lil Kim and Lily Allen. 

9. Last year he released the biggest selling song of the year with a very controversial music video. His genres include R&B, soul and hip hop.

10. British sweetheart. She released her debut album in 2009. Her commercial breakthrough came with her second album in 2012. Her name translates into "dove" in Spanish. 

ANSWERS
1. Britney Spears

2. Christina Aguilera

3. Jennifer Lopez

4. Kylie Minogue

5. Lady Gaga

6. Madonna

7. Miley Cyrus

8. P!nk

9. Robin Thicke

10. Paloma Faith 

NEWS: Stream Kelis' FOOD now!

Big news! You can now stream Kelis' new album FOOD for free on The Guardian's music blog! And I have to say it's pretty amazing! Forget everything you thought you knew about Kelis because this album changes everything! My review will be posted up nearer the time of release but why don't you have a listen for yourself here!

Grandes nouvelles! Tu peux écouter de la nouvel album de Kelis gratuitement maintenant sur le blog de The Guardian! Je devais dire c'est INCROYABLE! Oubliez tout ce que vous pensiez sur Kelis parce que ce album change tout! Ma revue sera publié plus proche de la temps de lancer. Ecoute de la nouvel album ici!  

NEWS: Robyn and Röyksopp to release mini album May 2014

It's official! Robyn and Röyksopp are releasing a mini album together due to be released 26th May 2014! Robyn and Röyksopp have been touring together for a while now and finally they've revealed they're releasing a solid piece of work! The album contains 5 tracks and is titled "Do It Again" A clip from one of the tracks "Monument" can be heard here!
I can't wait to hear the rest of the album! The two artists have promised us something really unique! Here's hoping it lives up to that!

C'est officiel! Robyn et Röyksopp sont lancement un mini album ensemble! L'album sera lancé 26th Mai 2014! Robyn et Röyksopp étaient tournée ensemble et finalement ils sont annoncé que ils sont lancer une pièce de travail. L'album contient 5 chansons et c'est appelée "Do It Again" tu peux écouter de un échantillon de l'un de les chansons ici!  
Je ne peux pas fait attendre d'écoute de l'album! Les artistes promis quelque chose incroyable!  

SINGLE OF THE WEEK: Que Veux-Tu- Yelle

This week Single of the Week goes to the fantastic Yelle! Yelle are a French electro-pop trio who shot to fame in 2005 with their track "Je Veux Te Voir" (I Want To See You).
This single "Que Veux Tu" (What Do You Want) comes from their second studio album "Safari Disco Club" released in 2011. The song is a quirky electric dance hit and the music video is really funky too! Check out the track here!
For Lady Gaga lovers there is a Madeon remix of the track, Madeon is responsible for many tracks on ARTPOP and his remix of the track is really worth a listen!

Cette semaine, Chanson De La Semaine va à Yelle et le fantastique »Que Veux-Tu » ! Yelle sont un trio electro-pop qui devenu fameux en 2005 avec le chanson « Je Veux Te Voir »

Le chanson « Que Veux Tu » été lancé en 2011 et c’est de la part de le deuxième album de Yelle « Safari Disco Club »  C’est très quirky et c’est excellent ! Ecouter de le chanson ici ! Aussi il y a un remix de la chanson de Madeon ! Ecouter ici !