Category Archives: Entertainment

Carrie Underwood and Brad Paisley Duet: His New Single?

Carrie Underwood and Brad Paisley are best buddies in the country music scene.

She was his opening act while promoting her debut album “Some Hearts” and they ended up recording a duet “Oh Love”, an awesome song that was never released. A huge missed opportunity, may I add.

Now, it looks like they have recorded another duet together. And I believe it will be the upcoming single of Brad Paisley’s upcoming album “This Is Country Music”.

First, Carrie’s latest single, Mama’s Song has peaked about a month ago at #2 and it has been rumored that she will not be releasing anymore singles from Play On. The rumor was questioned at first, but the longer we go without a single on the radio, the lesser the chance of continuing the Play On era.

Second, if no Carrie single is released from now till August or September, assuming a predicted November release date for her fourth album, it will be the longest period that Carrie has gone through without an active single on the radio. Far too long if you ask me.

Third, Brad Paisley’s current single “This is Country Music” is racing up the country charts and looks poised to peak at #1 in the coming two or three weeks. It currently sits at #3 on the charts, with a remarkably fast 13-week run, one of the fastest Brad Paisley singles to do so.

Fourth, Brad Paisley’s album is to be released late May, which means that if the current single peaks around early March, it would leave a two month period of no single on the radio to promote his album. A second single being issued is a certainty.

Fifth, Brad Paisley will be competing with Lady Gaga on his first week of release and while he will not beat her, releasing a second single that sparks wide interest among country listeners is sure to provide him with high sales numbers.

Sixth, with the huge success duets and group singles are seeing on country radio (Need You Now, Don’t You Wanna Stay, If I Die Young), it looks like the trend of having more than one singer on a track is paying off. Now get together the genre’s leading vocalists and put them on the same track and you have the recipe for a smash hit on country radio, one that will sustain Carrie through the wait for her fourth album and one that will provide Brad with the needed buzz for his album release.

Also, another thing to note is that with Carrie not having any single on the radio, she will not be able to sing anything at the ACMs and I doubt Brad would want to sing “This Is Country Music” there after debuting it at the CMAs and after it would undoubtedly have peaked.

So it looks like Carrie’s team has prepared a bombshell for us with an awesome single that will undoubtedly take the Country Music scene by storm. One can only hope the song is as awesome as we all think it will be.

Zheng Lab – Bad Project (Lady Gaga Parody)

This is a group of graduate biology students who decided, out of frustration, to come up with this parody of Lady Gaga’s “Bad Romance.”

Everyone who has ever dealt with the laboratory aspect of biology knows what they’re talking about and can tell how hilarious this is.

Credit for this goes to my good friend Elia Haber, current biology masters student and future scientist galore! 😀

Enjoy!

 

Miranda Lambert: Country’s New Queen? Nope.

I was intrigued by an article I saw posted on Twitter about how Miranda Lambert might be the current queen of Country Music. I wouldn’t normally feel the need to reply to such articles but the writer specifically took a jab at Carrie Underwood by saying the following:

She’s not taking a Louisville Slugger to anyone’s car, à la Carrie Underwood.

There is nothing personally I don’t like about some healthy competition in Country Music, especially among the female artists. After all, queen or no queen, they are all underdogs in this overwhelmingly patriarchal industry.

However, I felt that I need to point out somethings to the writer of the article, concerning Carrie Underwood. I will make point them out succinctly.

– Both Carrie Underwood and Miranda Lambert have started from reality TV-shows. The difference between them is that Lambert’s show is especially designed for country artists: it takes less to be noticed. Carrie’s show is broader, granted, but it makes it especially difficult for a female singer to be noticed. Carrie won her show, Lambert did not.

– The alluded Carrie Underwood track, “Before He Cheats,” is not her only hit. It might be her biggest hit overall, but she has 13 other hits under her belt, 12 of which have gone to #1. Lambert has 2 #1s.

– Unlike Lambert who followed up her biggest hit “The House That Built Me” with a song that was even referenced in the article as one pertaining to Lambert’s beauty, “Only Prettier”, which barely made the top 10, Carrie Underwood followed up “Before He Cheats” with a song that spent 3 weeks at #1: “Wasted.”

– The writer made a big deal of how Miranda Lambert’s debut album spawned a hit and was certified Platinum. Need I mention what Carrie Underwood’s debut album managed? 7x Platinum and 4 #1 singles, is it?

– Carrie won Best New Artist at the Grammys, Lambert did not.

– Carrie has brought legions of new fans to the country music genre, I don’t believe Lambert has had that effect – or at least as broadly.

– Carrie has won Entertain Of The Year twice. No other female has ever done that. And Lambert doesn’t look close to doing so. The writer boasts about her selling out an arena for her tour. Well, Carrie sold out hundreds of those arenas for her Play On tour. Millions of fans attended. I don’t need to cite sources for this, right?

– Revolution might have been the more critically acclaimed album but does the certification of “queen” involve a bunch of critics or the fans? Play On (2x platinum) has outsold Revolution (1x platinum).

– Miranda Lambert has won the CMA and ACM Female Vocalist Of The Year this past year. But let’s not forget who won those awards three times so far.

– The writer mentions how Lambert shows “no signs of stopping.” Does Underwood show any signs of stopping? She is busy writing her fourth album right now.

It’s nice when country artists start to get recognized, especially after struggling. And I personally have nothing against Miranda Lambert. I really appreciate her music. But no one came out and declared Carrie Underwood the new country queen when she won her first CMA Female Vocalist or when her album was having record breaking sales or when she won her first Entertainer Of The Year. She was always viewed as the country girl from Oklahoma who got lucky on that outsider show called American Idol. But what really makes a true country queen is the love fans have for her. And we, the fans, have shown our dedication for Carrie over and over again. I’ve taken time to write this, haven’t I?

The awards might have stopped pouring in. But they will come. Just wait… I have faith that Carrie will deliver a breath-taking fourth album. I’ve said this before and I’ll say it again. Carrie Underwood is vastly taken for granted in the Country Music scene. And she just doesn’t seem to care. She seems unfazed, continues to smile and give out her best. And for that, she is a true queen.

The Fighter – Movie Review

The Fighter is a 2010 biographical boxing movie about the life of boxer “Irish” Micky Ward (Mark Wahlberg) and his brother Dicky (Christian Bale).

It is a ferocious movie, sometimes violent, other times funny. And ultimately, it is a movie about the values of family more than anything else. In their tightly-knit community of Lowell, Massachusetts, the people who are cheering this fighter are ultimately the same people holding him back. And regardless of the many boxing games that you will get to see and the many adrenaline-pumping moments you will sit through, this is a movie that is sentimental. It is the story of a man, whose occupation happens to be bloody, and his quest to find himself: failed marriage, career going bad and a messed up family… this is his quest to make something out of his life. The family conflicts in this movie are even bloodier than the battles of the ring and ultimately much more interesting to watch.

The mother, played by the brilliant Melissa Leo, is running a matriarchy. Their father figure is weak to say the least. Melissa Leo, the current frontrunner for the Best Supporting Actress race at this year’s Oscars, immerses herself in her character immensely that at times you think they got this woman from some grocery store, taught her the lines and threw her in the movie. She embodies Ward’s mother in a real way that is also raw and haunting.

Christian Bale, the frontrunner for the Best Supporting Actor race, as Micky’s older half-brother Dicky, is the bad brotherly influence that you cannot escape – and ultimately always seek to impress. He used to be a hotshot boxer as well but lost it all in a spiral descent filled with drugs and whatnot. He wants to resurrect his career through his brother and in doing so, Christian Bale really shines. The sunken-eyed, pale and thin character he portrays is done so well at times that his performance is scary.

Amy Adams, as Micky’s girlfriend Charlene, is also nominated for Best Supporting Actress at the Academy Awards. I believe Amy Adams is one of the best new talents to come to Hollywood and this movie is yet another vehicle for her to further cement this belief. She is gorgeous, as usual, and plays the supporting girlfriend who wants to protect Micky from his own family in a raw, gut-wrenching manner. You can’t help but like her in the movie. And she is my favorite in the Best Supporting Actress race, albeit not the favorite to win.

Mark Wahlberg’s performance is low-key compared to his costars. And it’s precisely that which makes it really good. His subdued performance is the equivalent of his character. And as his voice gets stronger throughout the movie, so does his character’s. This low-key performance also symbolizes his internal struggle between staying faithful to his family and his responsibility towards himself.

All in all, The Fighter is another must see. And if you think all my reviews are ultimately about must see movies, it’s because 2010 has delivered movies of such a high caliber that not watching them would be, ultimately, a disgrace to the art of movie-making.

Harry Potter Honored At The BAFTAs

I posted earlier about the Harry Potter movies were set to be honored at the BAFTAs for outstanding contribution to British Cinema.

The BAFTAs took place earlier today. Here’s Harry Potter being honored. What can I say? Beautiful speech, beautiful introduction, beautiful montage and awesome people!

I hope Warner Bros. has it up its sleeve for a massive Oscar campaign for Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 2.