#ThrowbackThursday – Judy Garland’s little girl Liza May Minnelli turns 69 today! Acclaimed for her performance in Cabaret (1972), we think the song Cabaret from the movie, is the perfect number to celebrate with!
The film was an immediate success at the box office, earning millions in profits as much so in other countries as in North America. Fast forward to the mid-90s where it was selected by the Library of Congress for preservation in the US National Film Registry. It has been deemed as “culturally, historically and aesthetically significant.’’ To this day the movie holds a 97% “Fresh’’ rating on Rotten Tomatoes, a website devoted to film reviews and news.
Directed by Bob Fosse, the film is set in Berlin during the Weimar Republic in 1931, under the ominous presence of the growing Nazi Party. It’s some of Liza’s best work, for which she deservingly won the Academy Award for Best Actress In a Leading Role. In fact, the film scored an incredible 8 Academy Awards, including Best Sound and Best Original Song Score. It also won 3 Golden Globes, 7 BAFTAs and scores more, too numerous to mention.
Creation 5 users – you will find this video in Playlist >> Throwback Sessions
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The Script’s brand new music video for Man on a Wire is out! and tough love is what it’s all about. Shot in Cape Town, South Africa, lead vocalist Danny O’Donoghue shows off his wire-walking skills, attempting to win back the love of his life. The one he is trying to get over, according to the song, because she’s bad for his health… Apart from that one mixed message, the song and video got the scary heights part on par with the lyrics,
The higher I get The more I miss the ground No safety nets Now you’re not around I have to keep walking To keep me from falling down
Feels like I’m walkin’ on a tightrope My heart is in my throat I’m counting on high hopes to get me over you
The video was inspired by the French tightrope walker Philippe Petite who has his own famous documentary ‘Man on Wire.’ The song is their latest hit single, taken from their 4th album No Sound Without Silence.
In an interview with Metro, Danny shares what it was like filming; “We flew to Cape Town, we flew the director over from the USA, we secured a big budget and then suddenly it was the training day and I had to step off the building! It was so scary, everyone tells you not to look down but as soon as I stepped off I looked down. You can’t not look down. It doesn’t get any easier either, the wire is two inches in diameter and every step feels like the first step.’
Funnily enough, and ever so fitting, that his experience is a great way to describe having to get over somebody you loved. Just like in the song.
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A kaleidoscopic club adventure is had by a sultry Selena Gomez in the new music video for I Want You To Know. Co-written by Zedd, OneRepulic frontman Ryan Tedder and KDrew, there’s no wondering how it got so popular so quickly.
The music video was posted just yesterday (March 10) and already has 700,000 views. By the time you’re reading this it will probably have well over a million. The audio only version, posted just a couple of weeks ago, has racked up an impressive 12,000,000.
An adorable tuxedo-clad Zedd just watches Selena frolicking around the dance floor for most of the video with her bouncing cleavage. I mean, who wouldn’t be staring? Some lucky takers manage to bump and grind with her for a few seconds but she mainly wants to rave solo. Violently flipping all that hair around can’t be fun for close-by dancers anyway… So we’re pretty sure that’s the reason she’s been given her personal space. She does however take a break from all the hyper dancing to reapply her lipgloss and smooch her reflection in the mirror. Again, who wouldn’t want to smooch those puffy red shiny lips at such close proximity?
Ohh not you? Fair game. Just watch the video then, un-seduced.
Yesterday (March 9), Apple gave the world a second taste of their most personal device yet, the Apple Watch. Much has changed since their September event, so here’s a final look before the Apple Watch goes on sale on April 24, 2015.
When can I buy the Apple Watch?
Apple confirmed the official launch date will be April 24 for Australia, Canada, China, France, Germany, Hong Kong, Japan, the United Kingdom and the United States.
You can pre-order your Apple Watch starting April 10.
Sport Edition, Apple Watch and Edition – what’s the difference?
The Apple Watch has many different pricing options – big or small? Aluminum, stainless steel or gold? Plastic, leather or metal bands? Bare with us as we break it down:
Apple Watch Sport Edition
The Apple Watch Sport Edition is their lowest-tier smart watch. It’s made of a special anodized aluminum that is said to be 60% stronger than a standard alloy and has a shatter-resistant Gorilla Glass screen.
You can get the Sport Edition in silver or space gray, in both 38mm and 42mm screen sizes. Only the Sport Strap is compatible with the Sport Edition, which comes in a wide range of colors.
The Apple Watch Sport Edition goes on sale for $350 for the 38mm, and $400 for the 42mm screen size. The Sport Strap is included in the price, but is available for $50 separately.
Apple Watch
The Apple Watch is Apple’s mid-tier option, which is made of Apple’s own cold-forged stainless steel, said to be 80% harder than normal stainless steel, and scratch-resistant Sapphire Crystal.
The Apple Watch is available in polished silver and glossy Space Black, again in 38mm and 42mm screen sizes. Every strap will fit the Apple Watch, which gives you plenty of options. The Apple Watch goes on sale for $550-$1050 for the 38mm, and $600-$1100 for the 42mm, depending on which strap you choose.
If you’re in the mood for a different strap, you can purchase them individually: Sport band: $50 Leather loop, Classic buckle or Milanese loop: $150 Modern buckle: $250 Link Bracelet: $450
Apple Watch Edition
Yes, this is the 18-karat gold one. The 18-karat gold was developed specifically by Apple and is said to be twice as hard as standard gold. The Edition comes with the same Sapphire Crystal scratch-resistant screen, and will be available in limited quantities in select countries.
The Apple Watch Edition is available in 18-karat rose gold or 18-karat yellow gold, in both 38mm and 42mm. The Apple Watch Edition starts at $10,000, and based on Apple’s online store, stretches up to $17,000.
How do I navigate the Apple Watch?
The Apple Watch has several inputs.
Digital Crown
The Digital Crown is exactly what it’s name implies, instead of setting the time like a crown does on a watch, it controls the Apple Watch’s interface. It reminds us of the classic iPod’s click wheel. Press the crown to wake the watch, displaying the time. Pressing the crown once more brings you to the app screen. Zoom in and out by turning the crown, and tap on an app to launch it.
The Digital Crown has app-specific functions, like zooming in Apple’s Maps app, as can the Photos app.
Force Touch
Force Touch is Apple’s new pressure-sensitive touchscreen. Electrodes around the display allow it to distinguish a hard press from a tap. This allows a wide range of extra functions without cluttering the interface.
Siri
Apple’s Siri can also be used on the Apple Watch. The most obvious use is replying to text messages – you can use a default reply, tap on an impossibly small keyboard or simply dictate a message for Siri, without ever pulling out your iPhone. You can also use it to ask for information about local cinemas, traffic, and more.
Contacts button
There’s an extra button under the Digital Crown. This pulls up your contact list, and has different functions based on the app you’re using.
What does the Apple Watch do?
Several first- and third-party apps will ship with the Apple Watch. The watch is designed to work as an extension to your iPhone, not replace it. The Music app will let you play music from your watch’s local library or your iPhone’s using the watch’s speaker. Most of the default iPhone applications will be available on the Watch as well.
Third-party apps include Facebook, the Nike+ Running app tracking your activity, Dark Sky for weather forecasting. Ebay will let you purchase things from your wrist.
The Apple Watch will also be NFC-enabled, allowing you to pay with Apple Pay. Apple has also claimed that the watch will eventually replace your car keys and hotel room keys.
How does it connect to my iPhone?
Apple’s latest iOS update (8.2) released today includes a new Apple Watch companion app. You can access the watch-specific App Store, set reminders, create automatic responses to messages, and much more.
It’s been confirmed that the Apple Watch requires an iPhone to work. Without the companion app, no changes can be made to the watch.
How does the watch work as a fitness tracker?
Apple’s Fitness app uses the built-in heart rate monitor, your iPhone’s GPS and an accelerometer to monitor your activity throughout the day. During a heavy workout, the watch can be used to show specific information on the intensity of your workout.
The core of the Fitness app are the “Rings”: the move ring, the exercise ring and the stand ring. These are all designed to make you sit less and move more.
The move ring determines how active you actually are during the day. The exercise ring tracks your exercise, and is completed when you spend 30 minutes exercising. Lastly, the stand ring monitors how long you’ve been sitting, and regularly reminds you to stand up and stretch.
The dedicated fitness app lets you set how fast you want to run, how far or for how long. You can set daily calorie goals, and earn awards that are shown on your iPhone’s fitness tracker.
The Apple Watch was originally meant to ship with a wide array of health sensors. Due to many obstacles during development, these were ultimately dropped.
How long does the battery last?
The Apple Watch’s battery is supposedly meant to last 18 hours, or up to 72 hours on “Power Reserve” mode. In Power Reserve mode, the watch will no longer show notifications, and lose functionality. This mode will turn on by default when the battery reaches 10% charge.
The Apple Watch has a claimed life of up to 3 hours of talk time, 6.5 hours for Bluetooth audio playback, 7 hours of workout with the heart rate sensor on and 48 hours of timekeeping.
The charging times are listed as 1.5 hours from 0%-80%, and 2.5 hours from 0%-100%. The tests are based off 45 minutes of app usage and a 30-minute workout with music playing over Bluetooth, including 90 time checks and 90 notification views over the course of 18 hours.
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Ciara’s definitely showing her ex-boo what he’s missing in her newest music video I Bet. Released onto her Vevo channel on March 9, the visual shows her amazing dancing (ballerina swag style), poise and sexiness, strength and vulnerability.
The song is the first single off her new album Jackie, due this spring (which she named after her mother, awww). Ciara explained “It’s inspired by how I can now see the world through her eyes, being a mom, and so that’s where the title came from.’’
There’s nothing like the love and support of your own mother to get you through a harsh breakup, and this song is very likely to be about the on again – off again relationship between her and rapper Future. The couple called off their engagement back in August 2014 when news broke of him cheating on her. The worst part of the whole ordeal is that there is a 9 month old son involved, Future, named after his father.
CiCi’s fans are outraged about the situation, but support her fully, with popular opinion’s such as this YouTube commenter: “I really hope her new album is a breakthrough. That man made her babymama #4, didn’t marry her, and cheated. I want her to touch souls on this album…anyway love the vibe of this song.”
Babymama drama aside, we’re all here for the music and Ciara couldn’t be happier with her new album. She expressed to the media “it’s my favourite album I have made thus far in my career. It is a new me. A new attitude. Sonically I am so content; I had my dream team of producers who I always wanted to work with.’’
Yeah I love you. I’m all cried out, I’m all tried out, I’m all fired out. Right now It’s killing me ‘Cause now I have to find someone else When all I wanted was you…
Sam Smith & John Legend, two of the main men in the industry today, have done something beautiful for a good cause. With all proceedings going to charity, this couldn’t be a more flawless rendition of Lay Me Down.
Written by Sam Smith himself, the song is originally from his debut studio album In The Lonely Hour (2014), and was the lead single. Sam has been quoted as saying that it holds a very special place in his heart. He loves the song so much that it’s going to be on his new album as well, serving as his next single.
“I recently visited a Comic Relief-funded project in my hometown which supports the young LGBT community in London. I’m extremely proud that my single will help raise money for projects like this and many others in the UK and across Africa.”
Legend added: “Sam is such a talented artist. We’ve been looking forward to working together for a while now. I’m so glad we could collaborate on such a great song and for such a great cause.”
In more news, he will be performing live on the Red Nose Day show (March 13) with John Legend. Fans from across the globe couldn’t be more excited.
The Veronicas are still wearing black, but bad-ass as ever in their new music video for Cruel.
The song is off the twins’ self-titled third studio album, and the visuals for the video came to life through the inspiration of the great horror film directors such as David Lynch and Quentin Tarantino.
Full of revenge, the video follows the girls as they go about exacting it. Overkill? Maybe a little.
“Eminem is a fucking genius,” Dr. Dre proclaims in ‘Not Afraid: The Shady Records Story’. Featuring interviews with Dr. Dre and 50 Cent this new Eminem documentary tells the true story of how he went from struggling local rapper to an international sensation with a hip-hop empire.
It follows the release of last year’s Shady XV compilation commemorating the 15th anniversary of Eminem’s label. The album provided a good summary of the label’s history but it failed to tell the story of how the label came to be and what it actually achieved. This 30 minute documentary, produced by Complex, fills in the gaps and takes an in-depth look at Eminem’s career.
Dr Dre had heard Eminem rap before he met him and couldn’t believe he was white! “Eminem and Paul Rosenberg make a great team. Whatever they decide to do, I know it’s going to be big, it’s going to be amazing and it will work.”
50 Cent calls Eminem “My Dre” in one of the interviews. He discussed how the label gave him a place to be himself and therefore become successful. “They provided a platform for me to be 50 Cent,” said the rapper “Every place else was afraid.”
The necklace that Eminem is wearing in the video is the Sobriety Circle & Triangle Symbol used by Alcoholics Anonymous. The equilateral triangle represents the three-part answer – unity, recovery and service – to a three-part disease – physical, mental and spiritual, while the circle represents wholeness or oneness.
For Poldoore, Belgium born beat-maker, it’s all about the good vibes. His atmospheric fusion of funk, soul, jazz, and hip-hop leaves us with nothing but a distinctive melodic presence; a presence infused with harmonic and halcyon sounds. Fresh out of the shadows of the deep dark Web, Poldoore is one of the few to rise into the spotlight with true musical credibility and creativity.
Proactive in all possible ways, Poldoore managed to build himself an online presence across social media platforms and was subsequently picked up and championed by Cold Busted. Recently back from his first European tour following the release of his first album – The Day Off – he’s already plunged himself knee-deep into the release of a new EP coming out soon on Cult Classic Records. Humble, honest, and insightful, with plenty of advice to share, Poldoore tells us what’s up.
Your love and appreciation for all types of musical genres truly comes out in your music. Who are your favourite artists and why? I have indeed always enjoyed different styles of music and try to infuse all of these influences into my productions. It’s hard picking out favourite artists, but the first ones that come to mind right now are Emancipator, Tycho, Pretty Lights, the Pete Rock – CL Smooth combo, Curtis Mayfield and Thievery Corporation.
No doubt, this has driven you to produce eclectic tracks, sampling all sorts of artists from all sorts of musical backgrounds. How do you choose to sample one track over another? At first I generally look for a cool hook that would form a good backbone for the song. This has to be a piece of music that’s very melodic and ready to chop up. After that it’s a matter of combining other subtle elements that add to this hook without dominating it or pushing it to the background too much. Looking for decent samples is often extremely time-consuming, but at the same time a lot of fun as I constantly discover new artists and music, and the stories behind them.
Social media has redefined the ways in which the music industry functions. What do you think has been the Internet’s biggest impact on music today? Amen to that. Nowadays it’s so much easier to get your music out there compared to 10-15 years ago. Artists who already have a big following can simply put their music out and it will spread automatically thanks to Twitter, Facebook, SoundCloud, YouTube and whatnot. Just look at Beyoncé’s stunt last year, when she released her album unannounced. It dropped as a bomb, became viral and sold significantly better compared to her previous one, without too much advertising.
There is so much talent out there and so much music circulating online. What do you think is the most efficient way to getting your music heard these days? What do you have to do to make yourself stand out from the rest of the crowd? Well obviously it all starts with your music. Without decent productions that are slightly original it’s way harder to get your music out there as an artist who’s starting out. What I did in the beginning is upload my music to SoundCloud and share them in groups. Tagging your music on YouTube with appropriate terms is extremely helpful too. Look for blogs that post your type of music, email them, tell your story and why they should share your music. That kind of stuff. It’s obvious that it takes some time to gain a following.
Was this the case for you? Of course. I spent years figuring out a style and developing a certain sound. I sent countless emails to different blogs when I started out, hoping they would pick up my music. You have to be prepared to put in a lot of time, both in producing and promoting if you want to have your music heard by the people.
As someone with an extensive online presence, are there any independent up and coming artists you’ve come across that you think we should look out for? Oh yes, there are lots of gems out there. I love browsing around SoundCloud or YouTube and discovering new artists, both signed and unsigned. My recent discoveries include Sunclef, Reki, The Planty Herbs, Kaligraph E and Farid N.
What’s the creative process behind the production of your music? How do you find inspiration and how do begin a new track? I don’t do particular things or anything to find inspiration. One day I’ll have tons of inspiration and make a tune relatively quickly, where the next day I don’t have any inspiration at all. It depends on my mood and the amount of sleep I had. I usually start working on a drum pattern, as it’s always the most important element in my songs and dictates its flow. After that I’ll try to come up with a nice chord progression that fits the beat or find a sample to chop up and work from there. Lately I’ve also been working with some musicians and vocalists which is of course very inspiring and a lot of fun to do.
What programs do you use and why? I’ve always been a big Ableton Live fan and user. When I started out producing I experimented with pretty much every piece of software there is, but eventually I stuck with Live. It’s super fast, super easy and great for experimenting and sampling. Apart from producing it’s without a doubt the most versatile program for playing live acts, which is very convenient given the fact that I also use it for making music in the first place. I don’t think I’ll ever switch.
All of your tracks give out a super chilled-out vibe. Do you have a target audience in mind? Does this affect the types of venues you play at? I never have a particular audience in mind when making music. I just do my thing and see where I end up with it, to be honest. As far as venues go, I played a wide variety of them, going from a festival right outside a castle in the middle of nature, to a dark underground club. So I guess my music isn’t specifically related to a certain type of venue, although I personally love outdoor festivals in unique locations the most.
Can you tell us a bit about the projects you’ve been involved in ever since you and Cold Busted tied the knot? Cold Busted was the first label that believed in me and released my music. They’ve done so much for me and I’m extremely thankful for that. My first decent release was Volume 6 in the Street Bangerz series, for which Gramatik produced the first 3 editions. I’ve been a big fan of it so I felt honored to do an album for them. After that I released a couple of remixes, singles and last year my first album – The Day Off – came out on Cold Busted. They handled the vinyl, promotion, distribution and everything concerning the release. The vinyl’s sold out in a matter of months, which is of course very rewarding for both the label and myself.
What have been the highlights and the biggest challenges you’ve faced so far? I’ve always found that the most challenging part is to keep my music interesting and versatile, while at the same time maintaining a certain sound that’s somewhat recognizable. 2014 gave me the opportunity to share my music live across Europe (Spain, France, Belgium, Greece, the Netherlands…), which was definitely a highlight in my musical career. It’s crazy but at the same time so satisfying to go somewhere far from home and see people singing along to your songs.
What are you working on at the moment? I’m constantly working on new music, whether I’m on the road or at home. In general I just make all kinds of music, and then decide later on which tracks I’m going to bundle into a release. There’s an EP coming out on Cult Classic Records (an independent label from London, UK) very soon, featuring some very skilled MC’s and vocalists. One of them is Cise Starr, who used to work with the late Nujabes. Next to that I’m also working with musicians, in order to create some kind of personal, original sample library that I can sample from. There’s always new music coming up from my camp, so be sure to keep an eye out for new announcements.
Where do you see yourself 5 years from now? I’ve never thought about that, but I hope I can still do what I love, which is making music and sharing it with the world. I love to travel and meet new people. The combination of doing so while spreading my music is just unreal.
#SundaySessions: What are your three favourite tracks at the moment and why?
1 – Hiroshi Suzuki – Romance “I randomly came across this Japanese jazz gem on YouTube the other day and can’t stop listening to it. Apparently it’s a very rare album, but I’d really like to get my hands on the 12” someday. I’m a big fan of smooth jazz music and often sample it in my productions.”
2- Elzhi – It Ain’t Hard To Tell “Covering an entire Nas album is a tough job for sure, but Elzhi paid his respect to the classic album “Illmatic” in a way that does it justice. He’s one of my all-time favourite MC’s. Elzhi’s voice, flow and lyrics are one of the best in the game if you ask me. Working with him one day would be a dream come true.”
3- Snakehips – Forever “These guys are one of the hottest production duos at the moment in my opinion. I’ve loved every single tune they put out up until today and often drop a track or two of them in my DJ sets. Their music is a perfect combination of old school boom bap beats with those smooth 90s R&B vibes and funky synth lines. Top notch stuff.”
Former Breaking Bad star, Bryan Cranston, celebrates his 59th birthday today. The show may be over, and Cranston may never have another role to equal that one, but Breaking Bad was undeniably masterful and it will certainly be watched for many years to come. His legacy is set!
He was born Bryan Lee Cranston in Canoga Park, California and aside from his role as Walter White in the AMC crime drama series Breaking Bad, Cranston also gained notoriety for his role as Hal in the Fox comedy series Malcolm in the Middle and Dr. Tim Whatley in the NBC comedy series Seinfeld.
For Breaking Bad, he won the Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series four times, including three consecutive wins (the second time in television history after Bill Cosby in I Spy during the 1960s). After becoming one of the producers of Breaking Bad in 2011, he also won the award for Outstanding Drama Series twice. The role also earned him five Golden Globe nominations and one win in 2014, nine Screen Actors Guild Awards nominations with four wins and five Saturn Award nominations with two wins.
“Your performance as Walter White was the best acting I have seen – ever.” That comes from an email Anthony Hopkins sent to Bryan Cranston. We’re in total agreement. But even without Walter White, Bryan Cranston is a great actor and comic. We’ve collected together a few of our favourite Breaking Bad related clips.
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