Mega Music Talent

Archive for November, 2008

The award winning musical The Lion King, which celebrated its 10th anniversary last year, has now made it to the White House. On September 15, 2008 in the evening members of the cast performed before a group of dignitaries at a Whitehouse State Dinner’ hosted by President and Mrs Bush, in honor of Ghana’s President John Kufuor and his wife Mrs. Theresa Kufuor. The numbers being performed by the cast include “One By One,” “Shadowland,” “Can You Feel The Love Tonight,” and “He Lives in You.” Written from the beautifully animated Disney film, The Lion King, the musical has been winning renown and praise since it first began to appear on stage almost 11 years ago.

The musical tells the tale of a young lion cub, following his epic adventures as he travels into adulthood trying to understand his past and where he stands in the Circle of Life. The movie was excellent, going on to win the Oscar Award for Best Music, Original Score by composer Hans Zimmer. It also won the award for Best Music, Original Song for the song “Can You Feel The Love Tonight” composed by Elton John with lyrics by Tim Rice. But some have argued that in visual beauty, the musical is even more fantastic.

With actors in wonderful costumes, with beautifully designed masks depicting the animals they represent, there is not much that Lion King the Musical can be found to be lacking in. The fact that the masks and puppeteers are not hidden, as the actors and puppets together present this wonderful story to the audience, actually seems to add a level of charm to the performance. With both the presentation of the animal and the brilliant actors revealed together, the melding of imagination with lack of pretense creates a world that is in some ways even more wonderful than the movie.

The idea for the masks that are worn on the head, rather than in front of the face, is taken from traditional African masks, which are meant to be functional rather than decorative. The puppets are Bunraku puppets, operated by a three-man team. The name is taken from the creator, Uemura Bnrakuken, who created the Japanese theatre form at the start of the 16th Century. Shadow puppetry is also used in this production, an art form that may have been around for as long as 2000 years, originated in either Greece or China. The art form uses flat wood puppets behind a screen to create scenes and backgrounds to the musical. All in all, this is an enchanting event, and a must-see production.

The September 15th Whitehouse performance will only include a remnant of the cast: Tshidi Manye who plays Rafiki, Dashaun Young who appears as Simba, and Kissy Simmons will be performing as Nala. Along with them, there will be eight members of the ensemble performing as well. This musical, already famous and gaining more fame during its ten years on stage, will now be known as one of the few such performances to take place at the White House.

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This article is sponsored by stubhub.com and was written by Phoebe Bradley. http://Stubhub.com is a leader in the business of selling http://www.stubhub.com/lion-king-tickets/, concert tickets, theater tickets and special events tickets.

Billy Corgan and company will celebrate their 20th anniversary of the Smashing Pumpkins will a fall tour that kicks off in Nov. 1 in Cleveland. The Pumpkins promise not to repeat any songs on the set lists for the multiple-night engagements (for which special ticket bundles will be available). The first night of the tour is being called “Black Sunshine” and the second “White Crosses.” The Pumpkins will deliver two nights each at the Chicago Theatre and Auditorium Theatre in their Windy City hometown. Prior to the tour, the Smashing Pumpkins will play Neil Young’s annual Bridge School Benefit outside San Francisco (their first time since 1999).

The Smashing Pumpkins have a new song, “G.L.O.W.,” which will undoubtedly make its way into the set lists and which is being featured in the upcoming Guitar Hero: World Tour video game. After Cleveland the Pumpkins will make their way to Toronto, New York and New Jersey before heading to Washington D.C. and Boston. Then the band will weave throughout the Midwest (stopping in Chicago and St. Louis) before heading to California, where they will play in San Diego before wrapping up their tour at the Gibson Amphitheatre in Los Angeles Dec. 2-3. The documentary It All Goes Wrong, for which the Smashing Pumpkins are the subject, will be released during the tour on Nov. 11.

Alternative rock fans have been diehard Pumpkin-heads since Billy Corgan and his Chicago bandmates emerged in the 1990s and Smashing Pumpkins tickets are sure to sell out as fans help the Smashing Pumpkins celebrate 20 years. Corgan formed the band in 1988 after he met Pumpkins guitarist James Iha while working at a guitar shop. Bassist D’Arcy Wretzky was soon added to the lineup and the trio quickly gained a local following which earned them an important gig opening for Jane’s Addiction. Drummer Jimmy Chamberlin joined the group just in time for the show and in 1990 the quartet released their debut single, “I Am One.” After the song was a success they issued a second single, “Tristessa” and launched a bidding war. Virgin Records won out and the band released Gish on the label’s imprint Caroline before its successful major label debut in 1991.

The Smashing Pumpkins opened for the Red Hot Chili Peppers and Pearl Jam to promote Gish but nearly broke up while on the road due to Iha and D’Arcy’s breakup, Chamberlin’s escalating drug and alcohol addiction, and Corgan’s battle with depression. Despite tensions within the band, the Smashing Pumpkins released their sophomore album, Siamese Dream, in 1993. The album was critically lauded and also earned commercial success with “Cherub Rock,” “Today” and “Disarm.” After headlining 1994′s Lollapalooza, the Pumpkins released the B-Sides and rarities disc Pisces Iscariot that October, followed by the release of the double-disk set Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness. With successful singles “Bullet with Butterfly Wings,” “1979,” “Zero” and “Tonight, Tonight,” the album went platinum over eight times, yet the Smashing Pumpkins endured personal tragedy at the apex of their popularity. The group’s touring keyboardist, Jonathan Melvoin, died of a heroin overdose (he was with Chamberlin, who survived) just before the band was set to play at Madison Square Garden. The Pumpkins subsequently fired Chamberlin and Matt Walker replaced him (Dennis Flemion filled in on keyboards).

The late ’90s saw Iha and Corgan starting their own label (Scratchie Records) and the band members working on side projects until the release of 1998′s Adore, which debuted with disappointing reviews. Prior to the release of MACHINA-The Machines of God two years later, D’Arcy left and Chamberlin returned but several months later Corgan announced that the Pumpkins were disbanding. Former Hole bassist Melissa auf der Maur joined the lineup for the Smashing Pumpkins farewell tour in 2000 and Machina II-The Friends and Enemies of Modern Music was released for free download online. The Pumpkins pursued side projects until Chamberlin and Corgan released another Pumpkins album, Zeitgeist, in 2007.

Learning to play the guitar may be easy, but there are still good and bad habits that you should always keep in mind. The rules are simple: take note of the following do’s and don’ts so that you don’t waste your time and effort for nothing.

It takes time and patience to play the guitar. If you don’t have these two qualities, you might as well throw your guitar away because it can only bore and annoy you. Investing patience means listening to the song you want to play as frequently as possible. You are trying to get the idea of the song, so it is advisable to really get familiar with the song. Learning to play the guitar means that you have to be able to detail out every melody, pitch and frequency of the notes and patterns of the chords being played. Transferring the melodies to the guitar is easy once you are able to find out how the songs has been produced in the first place.

If you are really interested in learning to play the guitar then you should first master finger variations. You can do it if you are already familiar with the chords as these are the most fundamental knowledge for every guitarist. You cannot even play the simplest melody without the knowledge of guitar chords because these are the basics of learning the guitar. Once you have mastered them, your fingers will naturally follow.

The next thing to learn is strumming. Good strumming will enable you to play the guitar as a rhythm guitarists of a band or as a solo performer, just to amaze your friends. A good musician must be well-balanced and equipped when it comes to guitar skills – that is, he or she must be capable of both plucking and strumming. There are several ways in strumming your guitars and these are usually coupled with patterns to induce variations and style. Learning the correct strumming is relatively difficult because you have to maintain a steady and firm tempo and still be able to follow the melody. You can do this by constantly listening to the song you wish to play. Also, strum the strings according to the type of music – if you are playing jazz music with a too determined (rock style) type of stumming, it will simply sound wrong and it will be easily recognised as a mistake you are making. Because of that you should always get to know the song well enough to know what goes with it and what doesn’t.

If you are a guitar beginner, then you can rely on tablatures as they provide guitarists the finger patterns of the notes without having to deal with too many difficulties of actually figuring out the song on your own. If you are finding it hard to read and study tabs, don’t waste too much time on a single part of the song you just can’t get right – this will just slow you down and that won’t be helpful in your guitar lessons at all, because you need to advance quite quickly in order to stay motivated. It’s strongly advised to break the song down into smaller parts (intro, verse, chorus, solo, outro) and learn them one at a time. There are several advantages of using tablatures. With them, you can learn to play your favourite song quite accurately in a matter of hours or less. You can also learn only the part of the song that you are interested in playing. All the same, learning to play the guitar through reading tabs still requires a lot of patience and effort, but it’s all guaranteed to be worth your while.

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Will Griffin has been playing both acoustic and electric guitar for more than 10 years. For his guitar needs he visits http://YourChords.com. Check it out at http://www.yourchords.com

Playing the guitar doesn’t really need to be troublesome or difficult with the help of guitar lessons and tutorials that will give you a good start in learning how to pluck and strum the strings to produce the correct melody instead of noise. Here are a few simple things you need to know in learning to play the guitar:

Types of guitars. There are many different types of guitars that have been made popular in the past. Guitars can be electric or acoustic, depending on the guitarist’s preferred genre and style. Guitars are also perfect for rock bands, varieties of which include bass guitars and rhythm guitars. A rhythm guitarist usually provides powerful progression of beats, which is usually done with playing guitar chords instead of plucking the strings. A bass guitarist, on the other hand, usually makes use of low tones with its low pitched strings to produce the beat of the song. A bass guitar should perfectly blend with the drums; otherwise everyone will go out of tune.

Guitar chords. Transcriptions of songs for guitar players include chords that are the basic component of a song. There are so-called major (for a more determined sound) and minor chords (for a mellow sound), as well as seventh chords (mainly used for various transitions). They all produce distinctive sounds that distinguish notes from other forms of melodies present in a song. Guitar chords are available in the form of a music chart, which displays all of the existing finger positions that are simply the source of the distinct sound that these chords make. To start studying guitar chords, you have to be familiar with the finger assignments and placements when making an A minor chord, for example. You have to position your fingers on the guitar frets in the exact way the chart indicates – otherwise you will find your fingers awkwardly placed in the frets and the produced sound will be far from the desired one.

Reading tabs. This is one of the basic skills that any guitar player should gain. Tablatures are notes of a musical transcription that can be used to accompany a learning guitarist to “ride” with the tune and tempo of the actual song. A tablature is usually composed of strings and numbers, symbolizing frets and fingers that are required to play a certain part of the song. However, you can’t make any use of these tabs if you are not familiar enough with the timings and rhythms of the actual song you want to play. It is very helpful, therefore, to master the song first, so that you can finally “play it by ear”, just like any other guitarist. Tabs can be of great help to you especially if you want to impress friends with playing the most important part of the song – the lead.

Guitar tuning. This is basically the most important thing you need to do before your playing session – yes, I really recommend you that you tune your guitar every single time you want to play it. A guitar that sounds the same every time you play it really helps you to advance faster, it makes it easier for you to sing along and it helps you to stay in tune. For guitar tuning you can use an electronic tuner (you can find one in practically any store) or a computer software, if your PC has a microphone built in.

The author Will Griffin is a member of a rock band and plays both the acoustic and the electric guitar. Sometimes he takes his time to pass his guitar skills to the others. His favourite website is http://YourChords.com which is a great chords and tabs archive. You can visit it at http://www.yourchords.com

This year there are several strong contenders in the finals with a strong showing for the ladies. On Saturday nights programme the contestants had to sing a Mariah Carey song after some coaching from the star. Following you will find my thoughts on the remaining acts and the performances.

Simon Cowell Male Singers Last 1

15 year old Eoghan Quigg is a bit of a conundrum to me. The panel reckon to be wowed by him and predict great things. I watch him and yes he is a great performer, cool as a cucumber on the stage and he connects with the audience, but when I just listen without watching I don’t find his voice that brilliant and wonder if it is strong enough to sell records.

On Saturday night Eoghan sang ‘Anytime You Need A friend’. A convincing performance but in my opinion vocally not one of the stronger acts.

Danni Minogue Over 25s Final 3

Spaniard Ruth Lorenzo is a very convincing performer and the sexiest – it’s rumoured that Simon Cowell fancies her! She has a good singing voice and especially when she belts out the choruses.

On Saturday night Ruth sang ‘My All’. I enjoyed listening though I thought that she was a little out of tune in the early stages of the song. Wearing a long red dress she looked great and I’m sure that her sex appeal will get the votes of men. The judges weren’t so keen and the put down from Louis Walsh ‘More Mariah Scary than Mariah Carey’ was unfair.

Rachel Hylton has an amazing voice as a soul singer but I don’t think that she is flexible enough to win the show. Rachel can be quite temperamental and that could affect her chances in the competition and her future.

On Saturday night Rachel chose to sing ‘Against All Odds’, possibly to reflect on her past and to remind voters of it (am I being cynical?). Her performance was good but to me not great and I don’t think that she will get through to the final with performances like that, but I think that she is talented enough to become a big star away from the X Factor.

The likeable Daniel Evans is a good singer but he hasn’t got the X Factor for me and like some of the judges I can’t see Daniel becoming a recording star.

On Saturday night Daniel sang ‘Open Arms’. It was a good performance, better than previous ones as the judges Louis and Simon sarcasticaly pointed out, but not as good as the other acts in my opinion.

Cheryl Cole Female Singers Final 3

Laura White has been one of my favourite singers since the auditions. This talented girl has a lovely voice and personality that I hope will bring her stardom in the future.

On Saturday night Laura sang ‘Endless Love’ beautifully, I couldn’t fault it. On first viewing I thought that to have her playing the piano at the beginning of the performance was a mistake, but the second time that I watched I liked it. My second favourite performance of the night.

Alexandra Burke was dropped 3 years ago by Louis Walsh and has come back this year as a very strong contender. Alexandra has a brilliant voice and a great personality.

On Saturday Alexandra sang ‘Without You’. It was a bit flat at first but ended brilliantly. My favourite performance of the night.

17 year old Diana Vickers is very different vocally and my favourite to win the contest. Diana is a breath of fresh air, with what the judges call a quirky voice and surprising flexibility. Her performances are mesmorising and every time that she has been expected to fail she has risen to the challenge.

On Saturday Diana didn’t perform because of severe laryngitis. Thankfully Diana was given a by and can still continue with the contest.

Louis Walsh Groups Last 1

I like JLS but I don’t think that they will win the contest. So far I’ve enjoyed their performances but none of them have been outstanding to me.

On Saturday they sang ‘One Sweet Day’. It was disappointing at first but when the harmonies kicked in it was great. Cheryls comments about not letting Louis turn them into Westlife started Louis and Simon arguing with her but I could see what she meant. JLS are full of character and when they let their own characters show through they are very entertaining.

The Results

The public voted the bottom 2 performers in week 5 to be Laura White and Ruth Lorenzo. A shock result because their performances didn’t merit being in the bottom 2, but unfortunately what seems to happen with the public is that they tend to vote for who they want to stay in rather than who gave the best performances of the night.

In the sing off Laura sang the Judy Garland song ‘Somewhere Over The Rainbow’ and Ruth sang Bob Dylan’s ‘Knocking On Heaven’s Door’. Both girls gave extraordinary performances, reinforcing my belief that they shouldn’t have been in the bottom 2. The judges voted 3 – 1 for Ruth to stay in the contest and Laura sadly to leave.Up until week 5 I agreed with the acts which were voted off but in my opinion Laura is better than that. Well there it is – my opinion, but feel free to comment and leave your own opinion.

Below you will find videos of Laura’s Endless Love performance, extracts from Laura and Ruths sing off and Mariah Carey and the finalists singing ‘Hero’ – The X Factor finalists number 1 record for charity.

Laura White – Endless Love

Ruth & Laura Sing Off

X Factor Finalists & Mariah Carey - Hero

Musical festival season is officially over, and it was a great one, wasn’t? The season of music festivals, which began last spring with Coachella and was followed by a string of others with kooky names like Bonnaroo and Lollapallooza, has come to a close with Austin City Limits. The Texas festival marked the end of the 2008 music festival season and even though it took place in September, just as fall was beginning to creep in, the 90-degree Texas heat allowed for festival fans to break out the short shorts and bikini tops one more time.

Jenny Lewis, of Rilo Kiley fame, took the stage solo on Sept. 26, the first day of A.C.L., with a performance featuring tracks from her newest release, Acid Tongue, as well as songs from 2006′s Rabbit Fur Coat while her newest fan, Bill Murray (yes, the Bill Murray) danced and sang along. While Lewis did her thing, Conor Oberst took the stage across the way with performances of “Danny Callahan” and “Milk Thistle” from his most recent eponymous album. Day One of A.C.L. also hosted the Mars Volta, N.E.R.D., the Swell Season and Vampire Weekend. Headliners Mars Volta delivered the psychedelic “The Widow” and “Goliath,” while N.E.R.D. brought fans up on stage to dance along to “Lapdance” and a medley of “Everyone Nose” and “She Wants to Move” which featured the melody of the White Stripes’ “Seven Nation Army. Zoey Deschanel, on a break from touring with M. Ward as She & Him, drew a crowd as a solo performer on the first day as well.

Day two featured headliner Beck with a shorter performance than expected, although fans still enjoyed his eclectic set list which spanned his career. Robert Plant and Alison Krauss performed “Killing the Blues” and “Gone Gone Gone” from last year’s Raising Sand and Led Zeppelin fans received a treat in the form of “The Battle of Evermore.” Spiritualized delivered one of Day Two’s best performances with a set list harking from their past releases (playing only one song-”Soul on Fire”-from their recent album, Songs in A&E). Iron & Wine took the stage at dusk with a more upbeat performance than their usual fare; the set list included “Cinder & Smoke” and “Wolves,” among other songs and a pregnant Erykah Badu sang “Healer” and Me” earlier on that day.

Dave Grohl and the rest of the Foo Fighters closed this year’s A.C.L., with a performance featuring newer singles like “Let it Die” and “Long Road to Ruin” as well as a cover of the Who’s “Young Man Blues” and old favorites like “Monkey Wrench.” Rock’n'roll proved to be the pervading theme for the final day of A.C.L., as the Raconteurs, Against Me! and Band of Horses also played. Jack White and Brendan Benson shared vocal duties for the Raconteurs, who delivered “Steady As She Goes,” “Level” and “Hold Up.” Gillian Welch offered some more soothing sounds for fans in a set which featured guitarist David Rawlings and an appearance by Alison Krauss.

In October the television series for which serves as the inspiration for Austin City Limits kicks off its 34th season. With episodes with Gnarls Barkley, the Swell Season, Erykah Badu and R.E.M. in store, fans will already be thinking of when to purchase their Austin City Limits Festival tickets for next year.

This article is sponsored by http://www.StubHub.com and was written by Kirby Brooks. StubHub is a leader in the business of selling http://www.stubhub.com/austin-city-limits-festival-tickets/, sports tickets, concert tickets, theater tickets and special events tickets.

Beck kicked off his seven-week North American tour at the Grand Sierra Resort and Casino in Reno, Nevada. The show opened with “Devil’s Haircut” and continued on a 23-song set that weaved tracks like “Chemtrails” and “Gamma Ray” from his most recent album, the Danger Mouse-produced Modern Guilt, in with old favorites like “Loser,” the song perhaps most responsible for introducing the world to the quirky singer and his Beat-like poetry (“In the time of chimpanzees, I was a monkey/Butane in my veins and I’m out to cut the junkie”). The show boasted folk rocker Devandra Banhart as an opener, who joined Beck on the stage for his own “Hey Mama Wolf” (which Beck hailed as his son’s favorite song) and a rendition of Bob Dylan’s “Leopard-Skin Pill-Box Hat.” Beck’s tour continues throughout the States, with a stop at the Hollywood Bowl, where the famed Hollywood Bowl Orchestra Strings conducted by his father, David Campbell, will play a sold-out show at the spacious outdoor venue.

The eclectic singer-whose music draws upon but is not limited to folk, country, hip-hop, pop, blues, R&B, jazz, indie and experimental rock, psychedelia, funk, lounge and Brazilian music-emerged in the midst of the alternative resurgence in the ’90s as the perfect answer to the media age. Beck is unable to confine to one genre, as his musical style features odd juxtapositioning of sounds that only he would try together. His unpredictable music, which basically has something for everyone, features lyrics that read like free-association poetry with humor and honesty thrown in for good measure.

Beck David Campbell was born in Los Angeles in 1970 to conductor and string arranger father David Campbell (who has lent his talents to Beck’s records) who left the family when he was a young child. Beck adopted the last name of his mother Bibbe Hansen, who had been a fixture at Andy Warhol’s Factory and appeared in the iconic artist’s film Prisoner. The creativity continues through Beck’s lineage, as his grandfather Al Hansen, a prominent figure in the Fluxus art movement, helped jumpstart the career of Yoko Ono. Beck spent a lot of time with his grandfather in Europe and with his other grandfather in Kansas while growing up in L.A., but dropped out of school after his sophomore year to concentrate on music. Beck self-produced a cassette of home recordings titled The Banjo Story in 1988 and moved to New York one year later but soon returned out West.

In 1991 Bong Load label owners Tom Rothrock and Rob Schnapf approached the struggling singer about recording some folk songs laced with hip-hop beats; the result was “Loser” and several other revolutionary tracks. The following year Beck inked a published deal with BMG and in 1993 he issued his first official releases, the single “MTV Makes Me Want to Smoke Crack” and the full-length cassette-only Golden Feelings. Bong Load finally released “Loser” and the single was an instant smash on indie radio stations in L.A., spawning a major label bidding war won out by Geffen (which allowed Beck to continue to release noncommercial material on independent labels). Mellow Gold was Beck’s major label debut in 1994 and Geffen re-released “Loser,” making the song the anthem for the slacker generation and allowing Mellow Gold to go platinum. After a string of small indie releases, Beck embarked on his first major promotional tour and issued his sophomore major label effort, Odelay, in 1996.

Critics were undecided about Beck after Mellow Gold, but the singer received unanimously positive reviews with his second major label album; Odelay was a commercial success with a succession of MTV hits like “Where It’s At” and “The New Pollution” and was lauded by critics as well. Although Beck released the mellow Mutations in 1998, the official follow-up to Odelay came with 1999′s Midnight Vultures, which was succeed by 2002′s folk album, Sea Change. While Beck’s collaboration with French electronic duo Air and his previous two albums were decidedly more trippy, his 2005 album Guero was a conscious return to Beck’s Odelay days. The album featured radio staples like “Hell Yes” and “E-Pro” and was followed by a remixed version of the album titled Guerolito later that year. The hip-hip influenced record, The Information, appeared in 2006 and two years later Modern Guilt paved the way for the singer’s current tour. The singer is sure to pack stadiums so get your Beck tickets soon and watch out for notable openers like Spoon and Band of Horses.

This article is sponsored by stubhub.com and was written by Kirby Brooks. http://Stubhub.com is a leader in the business of selling http://www.stubhub.com/beck-tickets/ sports tickets, concert tickets, theater tickets and special events tickets.

U2 is one of the most renowned, successful and loved bands to come out of the UK, and particularly to come out of Ireland, ever. Their music has wowed crowds since they first started out in Dublin, Ireland in 1976. The group has since then gone on to become one of the best-known bands of the century, solidifying their place as rock legends with a sound that no one, so far, has succeeded in emulating because of its powerful and unique qualities. The commanding voice of Bono, the incredible guitar of the Edge, the excellent bass of Adam Clayton and the awesome drums of Larry Mullen, Jr. have been wowing fans for more than three decades. The fact that U2 has been able to stay together for all three decades is an incredible testimony to their cohesion and commitment to their art.

Fans of U2 have recently been experiencing feelings of intrigue and for some a little bit of disappointment, as the long anticipated follow-up to How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb, originally slated to be released before Christmas, will not be arriving till 2009. Those fans who have stayed with the band longer, however, have enough faith in their abilities to meet the news with anticipation rather than dejection. Band leader Bono has stated that the reason for the band’s delay in releasing the album is that they have hit on a vein of inspiration that they have not fully tapped out. This essential piece of information has provoked a response of expectancy, as loyalty to the group is often born out of a respect for their music. Fans that are willing to wait are certain to be rewarded for their patience as this is a band that has proven themselves repeatedly in their artistic endeavors.

The group has been characterized by the excellence of their music, their faith in God, and their ability to make a name for themselves as a contemporary and relevant rock band. Even though they have often been categorized as an ’80s band, the group seems to be much more than that. Over the decades that they have been together many other groups have emulated or attempted to emulate the group’s sound over the years. Proving that U2 was not only well ahead of their time, but also that they had produced a kind of sound that is indeed deserving of international acclaim.

Though the individual members of the group are Christians, they have successfully removed themselves from the often cliched and somewhat overly sappy sentimentality that has characterized Christian music. Instead, producing music that is not only excellent but also relevant to today, instead of being bogged down by attempting to create overtly Christian music, they have created music that is a true and integral expression of life. They successfully moved out of the evangelical music trap, which tends to claim Christians artists as its own and then succumb them to stagnant stereotyped sound and given themselves room to express themselves creatively in the way that they feel they have been made to. Their latest album is greatly anticipated, as their uniquely inspired music is something that few bands can produce on the level that U2 has made their own. Be sure to catch the band live in concert as you eagerly await their next album, look out for tickets to see one of the most popular bands of both centuries.

This article is sponsored by http://www.Stubhub.com and was written by Phoebe Bradley. http://StubHub.com is a leader in the business of selling http://www.stubhub.com/u2-tickets/ sports tickets, concert tickets, theater tickets and special events tickets.

Beyonce has just announced plans for a 2009 tour in support of her upcoming yet-to-be-titled album, which hits stores Nov. 18. Jay-Z’s wife and R&B’s leading lady will play international dates in spring 2009 before coming back to play shows in North America early next summer.

Beyonce Giselle Knowles began singing, dancing and displaying her emerging diva as a young girl growing up in Houston, Texas. Beyonce and her cousin Kelly Rowland and two friends LaTavia Roberson and LeToya Luckett formed a girl group in high school. The quartet signed to Columbia Records in 1997 after changing their name from Girl Tyme to Destiny’s Child, and released their eponymous debut soon after. While the album’s lead single, “No, No, No” was hit, Destiny’s Child really hit the big time with 1999′s The Writings on the Wall thanks to the popularity of “Bug a Boo,” “Jumpin’ Jumpin’,” “Bills Bills Bills” and “Say My Name,” which rewarded the girl group with two Grammy’s.

As Destiny’s child continued its ascent to stardom, Luckett and Roberson were replaced by Michelle Williams and Farrah Franklin. Franklin only lasted with the group for a year and Destiny’s Child became a solid trio with Beyonce (who had dropped the “Knowles” by now) at the helm. In 2000 the girl-powered anthem “Independent Woman Pt. 1″ was featured on the soundtrack for Charlie’s Angels. The track also appeared on the group’s sophomore album, Survivor, which soared to number one on the charts and included the single whose name launched a national catchphrase, “Bootylicious.” Beyonce dipped her toes in the acting pool in 2001, starring in the MTV “hip-hopera” Carmen and co-starring in the sequel to the big screen blockbuster Austin Powers. Beyonce’s first solo single, “Work It Out” (which was featured on the Austin Powers sequel soundtrack) was followed by the scorching single “03 Bonnie & Clyde,” a duet with her then-rumored fling and now confirmed husband Jay-Z. (The couple somehow pulled off a quiet wedding 2008 in spite of generous media buzz around their relationship.)

In 2003 Beyonce released her debut solo album, Dangerously in Love, and watched as it climbed the charts to number one thanks to the infectious “Crazy in Love” and “Baby Boy,” a duet with Sean Paul. After securing five Grammys for her solo effort, Beyonce returned to Destiny’s Child for the group’s last effort: 2004′s Destiny Fulfilled. The trio went out with a bang due to the popularity of “Lose My Breath” and “Soldier” and Beyonce’s solo star continued to rise; she appeared alongside Steve Martin in The Black Panther and starred in 2006′s blockbuster Dreamgirls. That year Beyonce also released her sophomore solo album, B’Day, and the popularity of “Deja vu,” “Irreplaceable” and “Ring the Alarm” earned the songstress a Grammy for Best Contemporary R&B album.

Beyonce’s upcoming yet-to-be-titled album, her third solo effort, will be released Nov. 18 on the heels of the album’s singles “Single Ladies” and “If I Were a Boy” and her 2009 tour will have fans undoubtedly clamoring for Beyonce tickets once they go on sale.

This article is sponsored by http://www.StubHub.com and was written by Kirby Brooks. StubHub is a leader in the business of selling http://www.stubhub.com/beyonce-tickets/ sports tickets, concert tickets, theater tickets and special events tickets.

In any field you will want to make yourself prosperous and famous, you have to have the fervour and persistence, the courage and gumption to succeed enormously. Or else, you are just a dreamer.

Just like any venture, on the other hand, making it big in the dance music business has its own set of challenges and predicaments. Great thing that that there are competent models and thorough resources that will be of great help in making an aspiring DJ like you engrave your own niche in the sun.

Be Seen, Be Heard

You have to make yourself famous! Nobody has succeeded by concealing their abilities and you’ll certainly not be the first to break the fashion. You have to get out there and be visible, be audible, be appreciated, be lauded, be exposed. Here are a number of straightforward tips that you can follow:

Get closer to dance music enthusiasts by joining their online groups. Today, you must make use of the influence of social networking to your benefit including meeting other DJs and clubbers, particularly industry honchos searching for fresh talent.

Go to dance clubs frequently. These are the places where music aficionados and producers often meet for some activities. Not only will you be introduced to the big guns in the industry, but you can also take advantage of their social networks.

Use the web and all its freebies. Because YouTube and dropyourtalent.com are becoming more recognized, you can upload your videos there and ask your fans to spread the news. Always have an adequate number of videos so you can continuously augment the number of visits to your website.

Set up a website. With the increasing accessibility of free online space, it does not take you a lifetime to come up with your own website. With this, you can let the public know of your profile, music and even your personal information.

Being well-known means letting go of timidity and embracing boldness. Otherwise, you can forget reputation and riches in music.

Keep Your Audience in Mind

You might think it contradictory but in the dance music industry with its hundreds of DJs making music in many musical genres, you have to create that’s distinctively yours. Otherwise, you are merely another copycat having disfavoured covers.

The world-famous Tiesto, for example, had to undergo stages prior to becoming one of the best producers of trance and electronic dance music nowadays. He used to be an enthusiast of hardcore tracks, and of acid house music.

All the celebrated DJs – Tiesto, Paul van Dyke, Armin Van Buuren, Fatboy Slim, to name a few – have to find their unique sound and so should you. In short, you have to find your own beat.

On the contrary, you’re not playing merely for yourself. Dance music is designed to be danced to and it’s no fun when you are dancing all by yourself. With this, you should ensure that while you’re following the modern trends of music, you make one that will speak of you, and will sound unique.

You must be deliberate in everything that you do, though. Meaning, you need to practice, produce, listen to beats and produce your own mix. Never grow tired of doing this as this is faithfully what being a DJ is all about.

Someday soon, you will find yourself at the pinnacle of power in dance music!

Author: Grace Sanchez

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