13 Search Results for "britney"

• The 2009 VMA's

  • From: JAMMNJAY
  • Description:

    WOW!!  Well...I oficially wrapped up my time off by popping some popcorn and watching the VMA's last night.  All I can say is...WOW!!

    First off, Janet Jackson did a great tribute to her brother, Michael, which started off with dancers recreating the iconic moves of the late Kind of Pop.  Then, Janet emerged onstage during a performance of "Scream", the song she did with her brother in 1995.  Though Janet was visibly shaken, she did a great job and pushed on.

    A little after that, singer Katy Perry (one of my favorite new artists of the year) and Aerosmith's axeman, Joe Perry (think they're related?!) took the stage for "We Will Rock You", which ushered in host, Russel Brand.

    Next up, Taylor Swift won for "Best Female Video".  Personally, it was a tough choice, seeing as how all videos were amazing.  But, to see 19-year-old Taylor up there, genuinely excited about winning her first VMA, was great.  Of course, everyone is talking about Kanye West steamrolling her speech, but I won't.  I'll just say I've always been a big fan of Kanye's music and I'm sure everything worked itselt out afterwards.

    Much later on in the show, making me an even bigger fan of Beyonce's than I already am, Beyonce' was showing true sisterhood by allowing Taylor Swift to finish her acceptance speech when Beyonce' herself won for "Video of the Year".  Not many people would do that, especially female artists, but Beyonce' shows she's all for sisterhood and girls sticking together, but also class and true overall kindness.

    And did anyone see Pink's performance?!  WOW!!!  Talk about nerves of steel!!  Singing her hit, "Sober", while hovering over the stage doing an acrobatic performance.  AND SHE WAS STILL ABLE TO SING!!  YOU GO, GIRL!!

    And speaking of YOU GO GIRL!!, congrats and KUDOS to Britney Spears, who won for "Best Pop Video", though for me it was tough, being that I'm a big Cobra Starship fan.  But, really thrilled that Brit won and even though she wasn't actually there, she sent a video of herself and her dancers during their tour to give her acceptance speech than they all did a really cute dance afterwards.

    Lady Ga-Ga did a very unusal, but interesting, performance of her new song, "Paparazzi".  In my opinion, a very creative take on what the paparazzi does to people.

    Green Day, one of my ALLTIME FAVORITE BANDS!! did a great set.  They rock as always!

    And, finally, Jay-Z was OFF THE HOOK!!!!  He ended the show, aided by Alicia Keys, on a very high note.

    So, another entertaining VMA's that will have everyone talking for days, weeks, months...ect.  But I'm so thrilled it was back where it belongs, at Radio City Music Hall in NYC!!  Now, I anticipate what next year will bring.

  • Blog post
  • 2 months ago
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• Fragile

  • From: JAMMNJAY
  • Description:

    All of us, or most of us, have at one point in our lives dreamt about one day becoming famous and well known all around the world.  Fame and fortune.  Having everyone know our names.  But as we get older, we see the downside to fame.  Suddenly, the press feels as though they have the right to exploit you and own the rights to your private life.

    Now, more than ever, we witness the ever increasing negative side of fame.  The paparazzi (papaRATzi) chasing down these people, who for some reason become public property.  Even their own friends and family members, or innocent bystanders, getting caught in the chaos.  These "scavangers" are so desperate to make money off these people that they are actually willing to put the lives of innocent people in danger.

    Now, more than ever, with the recent tragic deaths of David Carradine, Ed McMahon, Farrah Fawcett, Michael Jackson, Gale Storm and Billy Mays, let's hope we now learn to respect the private lives of these people.  Yeah, they entertain us, we idolize them and we even worship them...yeah they may have their quirks and their own personal issues...that still does not entitle the press to pounce all over these people and exploit them.

    I now worry about Lindsay, Britney and Miley.  Let's just hope these women stay on track and don't go over the edge.  Remember, they are someone's daughter, sister, friend, family member...they are people like you and me.

  • Blog post
  • 5 months ago
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• Britney Spears Concert

  • From: TaraSherman
  • Description:
    Britney Spears Concert
  • 8 months ago
  • Views: 213
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• Britney Spears Concert

  • From: TaraSherman
  • Description:
    Britney Spears Concert
  • 8 months ago
  • Views: 225
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• Britney Spears Concert

  • From: TaraSherman
  • Description:
    Britney Spears Concert
  • 8 months ago
  • Views: 229
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• Britney Spears Concert

  • From: TaraSherman
  • Description:
    Britney Spears Concert
  • 8 months ago
  • Views: 195
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• Britney Spears Concert

  • From: TaraSherman
  • Description:
    Britney Spears Concert
  • 8 months ago
  • Views: 183
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• Britney Spears Concert

  • From: TaraSherman
  • Description:
    Britney Spears Concert
  • 8 months ago
  • Views: 207
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• Britney Spears Concert

  • From: TaraSherman
  • Description:
    Britney Spears Concert
  • 8 months ago
  • Views: 189
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• Britney Spears Concert

  • From: TaraSherman
  • Description:
    Britney Spears Concert
  • 8 months ago
  • Views: 177
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• Britney Spears Concert

  • From: TaraSherman
  • Description:
    Britney Spears Concert
  • 8 months ago
  • Views: 220
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• Britney Spears Concert

  • From: TaraSherman
  • Description:

    It's been years since I'd been to a Britney concert, so I was very excited to see the "Circus" show Friday night at the Prudential Center in Newark.

    Back when she toured regularly, I saw her every time she came to town. I know I should have better things to do with my time and money, but what can I say? I'm a fan :)

    We boarded the NJ Transit train to Newark and I immediately spotted a guy wearing a "Leave Britney Alone" tee shirt. All aboard the Britney Express! As we walked the block to the Prudential Center, it was like being at the Village Halloween Parade- girls in pink wigs, super high heels and super short skirts. I was especially impressed by the Britney faithful who came in full costume, re-creating classic Britney looks from performances and videos past...  from the "Hit Me Baby One More Time" schoolgirl to "Womanizer's" sexy secretary.

    

     

    

    The people watching was phenomenal and it was kind of amazing to see how all of these people were still in Brit's corner, despite all the drama of the past few years... it's like they'd been waiting breathlessly for the moment she was back on top, so they could get dressed up and come celebrate with her.  There was also a noticeable difference in the type of people in the crowd. At past Britney shows, there were tons of young girls and pre-teens with their parents. Friday night's crowd was almost all older teens and adults. I guess Brit's fans are all grown up ... and I suppose her recent antics have made her less of a family-friendly act...

    On to the show... Pussycat Dolls were the opening act... I have to admit, as much as I'm a pop music junkie, they don't do much for me... Nicole's voice is average and the other ones could fall on my head and I would have no idea who they were. Sorry to all the PCD fans out there- they did look amazing
    in their outfits, though- all that dancing clearly keeps them in shape! I wandered out to the concourse during PCD to get a tee shirt and was surprised to see the pickins were already slim... the vendors were down to only very small or very large sizes in most of the shirt styles. I guess the Britney Brigade are still willing to drop some serious coin- the average tee shirt was $40... up to $150 for a velour Britney hoodie!

    Around 9:30, the main event began. The show started with a video starring celebrity blogger Perez Hilton, dressed as Queen Elizabeth...  he welcomed us all to the "Circus." It was actually a very cool intro video- really well produced- it definitely set the tone for the crazy, sexy show that was to come!

    

    Britney came down from the ceiling in an elaborate ringmaster costume- the opening number was, of course, "Circus", followed by the anti-tabloid anthem "Piece of Me", which Brit performed, quite ironically, in a gilded cage, just like a circus animal.  I was pleasantly surprised to hear quite a few songs from her underappreciated album, "Blackout"- you know the one that came out right before Brit went totally off the reservation? It is full of great dance tracks and helped make the concert feel like a party.

    

    
    I know there are a lot of people who complain about the lip-synch issue... this is how I feel... if you're a Britney fan, you know what you're getting when you pay for a ticket- a great show, energizing and entertaining. You're not attending a concert by an accomplished vocalist, by any means- but you know that going in. You're there because Britney is a world-class entertainer, not singer. Yes, there is a difference :)
     
    Back to the show... the stage was in the round... one huge circle, or "ring", with a smaller circle on each side- a 3-ring circus. That setup meant there wasn't a bad seat in the house. 

    
     
    The "Circus" show definitely amped up the sexy factor... Britney had lots of lingerie-inspired costumes... her male dancers were way more buff than usual and not wearing much. There was one number when Brit was dancing alone, blindfolded, on a couch... only to have 2 brawny male dancers
    descend from the ceiling and pick her up, suspending her above the stage in some kind of swing-like contraption. Meow.
     
    Brit only slowed things down once, to sit inside a giant umbrella suspended from the ceiling to sing "Everytime." In the past, Brit has sometimes chosen to sing her ballads live, but this time around, she stuck to the track. She also kept the nostalgia to a minimum... she did her breakout hit, "Hit Me Baby...", along with "Boys" and "Toxic", but aside from that, it was mostly newer stuff.

    The encore was "Womanizer"... Britney wore a naughty police officer ensemble, complete with aviator shades and a nightstick. Other costume highlights of the evening featured a sari-type dress for a Bollywood-infused version of "Me Against the Music" and a gold chestplate-armor getup for "Do Somethin'"/ "Slave 4 u". Britney looked gorgeous in all the outfits. Her comeback physique is strong and toned, with curves in all the right places. Definitely not the body of someone who had 2 kids! And the trademark whipping of her long blonde extensions was in full effect! I did notice she wore heels a lot.

    
    Back in the day, Britney danced in sneakers, even for awards show performances. I know the heels up the hottie factor, but I'd love to see Brit and her dancers back in comfy dance shoes so they can kill those dance moves like they used to!
     
    The other element of the "Circus" theme was entertainment by circus-type performers. This happened before Britney went on, and also a little during costume changes. It was an interesting element, and added to the overall "freakshow" theme they were trying for, but everytime they came on, I was like "enough with the clowns (or jugglers or martial arts dudes)... bring out Britney!"

    
     
    One thing I did feel was missing was more of a connection with the crowd. We did get a few perfunctory "How you feelin' New Jersey?" shout-outs, but I have definitely seen Britney interact more with the crowd- I guess since she's just getting back into the swing of things, her team
    wanted to keep the show as pre-planned and controlled as possible.

    
     
    The capacity crowd was on their feet, screaming, dancing and singing along the entire time. The camera flashes in the crowd were non-stop. I couldn't help but think Brit must feel touched that all these thousands of people still wanted to pay their hard-earned money see her after everything that's gone down- she probably had some pretty dark days- did she know that she still had so many faithful fans in her corner? The funny thing is every time you go to a Britney concert, there is this feeling of camaraderie- strangers talk to you, everyone compares outfits- it's like she brings
    people together who want to celebrate and have a good time :) I hope she's having a good time, too!

  • Blog post
  • 8 months ago
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• Jamm'n Jay's Music Newsletter:

  • From: JAMMNJAY
  • Description:

    "80's Music Making a Comeback!"

    Some of the hottest new acts in music today are taking cues from the synth-driven sounds of the 1980's.

    Don't believe me?

    Take a listen to the likes of Lady Ga-Ga, The Killers, The Scissor Sisters, Katy Perry, Gwen Stefani and countless others....even some newer indie acts such as Team 4, Kaliopi, Sabrina Shaheen...even though these acts have their own unique sounds, each have heavy influences from past music acts.

    The Killers and Gwen Stefani, most notably, feature hints of everyone from Duran Duran to Depeche Mode in their music.  Even listening to any song by Coldplay could make one think they're listening to an '80s-era U2 track.  Even younger acts such as Miley Cyrus borrow the synth/pop and melodies from said decade.

    Acts from the 1980's have been keeping up with the stars of today as well.

    U2's out with a brand new song, "Get On Your Boots".  Madonna is constantly reinventing herself.  Heck, these acts have been known to join forces with some of today's hottest superstars.  Madonna collaborated with everyone from Britney Spears, to Pharrell, to Justin Timberlake, to Timbaland.  Timberlake/Timbaland joined forces along with Nate "Danja" Hills to work on Duran Duran's "Red Carpet Massacre".  Now, DD is working in the studio with Mark Ronson. 

    Synth/Pop isn't the only '80s sound making a massive comeback. 

    With acts such as Def Leppard and Bon Jovi hitting the road and newer bands such as The Darkness and Rufus Fontain, it's safe to say that the sounds of the '80s are crossing musical barriers.

    Speaking of artists from then and now making music together, country megastars such as Tim McGraw and Sugarland have teamed up with Def Leppard and Bon Jovi, further bridging the gap between rock and country.  Just as Run DMC and Aerosmith started bridging the gap between rock and rap.

    I'll be back with a new music blog next week.

  • Blog post
  • 8 months ago
  • Views: 238