Posts tagged "Nicki Minaj"

After Ingesting the Hype, Thank Drake for Making a Solid Album

Hype is a hard thing to overcome-I’ve said it before. As someone who follows the goings-on of the music industry, I certainly fall victim to heightened expectations and wind up getting disappointed every once in a while. No one’s been the beneficiary of more hype over the course of the past year than Drake. His story seems unlikely in the world of hip-hop. He’s biracial. He’s Canadian. His first name is AUBREY, for Chrissakes. Even more damning, he was a […]

How Strong *Is* Christina Aguilera’s “Bionic”?

I was fully expecting “Bionic”, the fourth English-language studio album from Christina Aguilera, to be a disaster. I wasn’t sure how her bombastic vocals and pop sensibility would blend with an intriguing list of collaborators. My suspicions seemed to be confirmed once I heard the fairly generic first single “Not Myself Tonight” and follow-up “Woohoo”, which features the unbelievably annoying Nicki Minaj. There was no way in hell “Bionic” was not gonna be a hot mess. Well, “Bionic” is kind […]

Saturday Backspin: Heather B.

Whatever happened to the female emcee? Or more appropriately, whatever happened to the female emcee with mic skills? It’s kinda sad that the role of the woman in hip-hop has devalued over the years from Queen Latifah and MC Lyte to Nicki fuckin’ Minaj. There’s no template for a successful female rapper that can not only compete with guy emcees, but can do so while keeping their clothes on. Post-Kim and Foxy, every successful femcee has stressed the power of […]

Um…How the Hell Does Justin Bieber Get Nominated for a BET Award??

Nothing gets my goat quicker than the announcement of award nominations. It seems like the older I get, the more I realize how much awards are based on political considerations and not based on actual talent or even common sense. To wit-the nominations for the BET Awards were announced this week. Most of the nominations go according to what you’d typically expect for a BET-endorsed award show-Alicia Keys, Jay-Z and Beyonce are among the key nominees-hell, it seems like they’re […]

Blerd Radio Episode 1: Livin' La Vida Loca

While MisenPOPic Radio is on hiatus (congrats to my homie and co-host Mikey Hersh on the birth of his daughter), I decided to come up with my own podcast. It’s a little looser and I decided to go with the host-and-two-guests format rather than just the two co-hosts. Thus, Blerd Radio was born. While me and my boy GG did a quickie test episode last week, “Livin’ La Vida Loca” is the first real episode, and it again features GG as well as my girl […]

From "Yeah!" To "Oh HELL No!": Usher's "Raymond v. Raymond"

For a second, Usher was the King of Pop. He’d been successful by anyone’s definition of the word, but 2004’s “Confessions” sent him into the stratosphere. It spawned 4 #1 singles, won 3 Grammy Awards, and is the last album to be certified Diamond for shipments of 10 million copies. Not only had Usher officially made the leap from teen idol to adult superstar, but his follow up album, 2008’s “Here I Stand”, was widely expected to cement his megastar […]