Here is a fresh Rihanna leak. Not sure if this is a demo for her upcoming, still untitled 2009 album, or if this is an old unreleased track. But like her previous leak “Bad Girl,” “How I Like It” isn’t very impressive. But also like “Bad Girl,” this new tune is a grower. Not sure what to expect on this new album, it would be pretty sad if the follow-up doesn’t reach the level Good Girl Gone Bad reached.
Listen to “How I Like It” after the jump Continue reading →
I haven’t been a fan of The Bird and The Bee long. Maybe I still wouldn’t consider myself a fan, but I am appreciating what I’ve heard so far. But when I heard this cover, I just felt something inside me come alive.
You all know how I get with good covers, and this one certainly gets an A+ in my book. Even if The Bird and The Bee aren’t your thing, make sure to give this cover a listen. Rihanna’s “Don’t Stop the Music” sounds terrific over The Bird and The Bee’s atmospheric, Sia-esque instrumentation. Trust Me.
Catch their upcoming album Ray Guns Are Not Just the Future out Jan 27th. Continue reading →
I couldn’t do the whole “Best of 2008″ party without including some of my favorite covers, especially since 2008 was such an awesome year for cover-heads. I have featured all of these covers on Pretty Much Amazing before, you if you’re an avid reader, you might already have them. If you saw them on the blog and DIDN’T download them: shame on you, butthead, these are the cream of the crop and my absolute favorite covers of 2008. Without further adieu, here are my favorite covers of 2008 (in no particular order) Continue reading →
Stereogum and team9 have teamed up for a third year in a row to bring us their MySplice III mashup compilation. The mix includes 2008 blog staples like Bloc Party, Lykke Le, of Montreal, Beck, and Crystal Castles mashed with 2008’s ineluctable pop hits (Britney Spears, Rihanna, Kanye, Katy Perry). Oh, and they through in some oldies as well (Cyndi Lauper, Guns N’ Roses, etc).
I don’t know if you guys feel it too, but I can’t help but think this is the best MySplice yet.
Stream the whole thing here, and download the mp3s below the player.
Maroon 5’s remix album, Call and Response, is (in concept) very cool. There are various artists remixing M5 songs, with widely differing backgrounds. From Pharell to the Cool Kids; DJ Quik to Deerhoof, you get some serious hip hop credibility fused with indie style. Throw a little Mary J. Blige and Rihanna vocals on top of the already talented pool, and the end result is a surprisingly strong collaboration. Again, in concept- very cool. In practice? Well…
Just in case you didn’t know,  Britney Spears’ new album Circus leaked last night. It was quite the spectacle — each track leaked one by one in under 6 hours. The international bonus tracks just leaked today. While each track was leaking, the biggest of the Britney fansites were crashing. Even popular mp3 host, Mediafire.com had its servers overloaded. Pretty Much Amazing also saw its biggest day EVER, traffic wise, last night, with over 33,000 people coming in looking for the tracks.Â
This leak is momentous in one way or another. It has overshadowed Kanye West’s 808s and Heartbreaks and Lil Wayne and DJ Drama’s Dedication 3. Can we expect this internet hype to translate into massive first week sales (Watch out Wayne!)? Time will tell, but for now, all this is exciting.
 No, this isn’t Beyonce covering the Eurythmics’ “Sweet Dreams,” but seriously, how cool would that be? No, “Sweet Dreams,” formerly known as “Beautiful Nightmare,” is another leaked track off Beyonce’s November album I am… Sasha Fierce.Â
I am liking the electro-influences this track carries, it is such a refreshing change for Beyonce. I wish the album featured a bit more of this Jacques lu Cont-esque production.Â
Rihanna, eat your heart out. No, I love Rih Rih, and still hoping for a Rihanna / Beyonce duet. A real one, not a Breast Cancer Charity single.Â
Listen to “Sweet Dreams” after the jump Continue reading →
This is a freshly leaked DEMO from Rihanna’s LP4 recording sessions (or something?). I’m sure that with the million-dollar producers Rihanna has at her disposal, “Bitch, I’m Special” can be made presentable. But I do gotta give it to Rihanna — this demo  is loads better than the Prince-sampling “Sexuality.”Â
Download “Bitch, I’m Special!” after the jump. Continue reading →
“Magic” is the Stargate (Rihanna, Beyonce, Jay-Z, Cher, Janet Jackson, Leona Lewis, the list goes on and on, shiiiit!) produced demo/first-single hopeful that is thought to appear on Justin Timberlake’s upcoming album. According to the MP3 file, JT’s next album might be titled Mr. Timberlake.
Nothing is official though, I’m just passing on some hearsay.
Anyway, onto the track. It’s absolutely fantastic. New or old, this is how Justin Timberlake should sound like. There is one thing that stands out — the lyrics. They’re obviously meant to be sung by a female. That, or this is Justin Timberlake’s very fashionable way of coming out.
So let me start this rumor — Justin Timerlake wrote this song and co-produced it with the Stargate team and the song is meant for someone like Rihanna or Britney Spears.
Download Justin Timberlake’s “Magic” after the jump! Continue reading →
Rihanna completely owned the radio and the digital charts in 2007 and 2008. The little superstar is planning to take over 2009 as well with her fourth album. “Sexuality” is the first clip from LP4 to surface.Â
Rihanna is no stranger to borrowing yesterday’s huge hits to make some damage of her own. In the past, she has taken over with singles sampling Michael Jackson and Soft Cell. This time she’s hitting up Prince himself for a hook to what may be a future dynomite hit. “Sexuality” sample’s Prince’s brilliant 1981 hit “Controversy”.Â
I’m all for Little Miss Sunshine sampling Prince (or Michael Jackson, or Soft Cell. Especially Soft Cell) because it’s really helping her zero in on that techno-pop/rock sound that she has notoriously revived. In the past, I have gone as far as to claim that Rihanna is, in fact, the Nazarene that will issue the new pop revival pop music has been starving so long for:
Pop Music Revolution Timeline:
1988-90 – The New Kids on the Block
1997-99 – Backstreet Boys, *N’Sync, Britney Spears
2008-??? -Â RIHANNA
