COMING UP....

Coming up on iBraglots, we've got MORE album reviews, MORE music video reviews, MORE reviews (in VIDEO form!), and TONS of song spotlights! Keep it here, cause things are gonna get really interesting...

Song Profile: Jennifer Hudson - Still Here

Jennifer Hudson's latest album was a grand leap of improvement over her debut effort. The entire set is full of palateble material that shows off her voice, but doesn't verge on screaming. One of the lost gems on this fantastic album is "Still Here". Written by songwriting whiz Diane Warren, "Still Here" speaks of having someone in your life who may no longer be there physically, but all the strength and love that they gave you is still present. It's hard not to associate the message of this song with the triple homicide that took the life of Jennifer's mother, brother, and 7 year old nephew back in 2008.

Musically this song harkens back to the days of the diva ballads. Jennifer gets the opportunity to shine vocally, but the greatest moment comes in the last few bars, after the climax, where Jennifer gets to vocalize in a smaller, more subdued fashion than many listeners are used to hearing her.

These are the moments in music I find to glorious. The moments where the song is coming to a close, the piano and guitar are given a brief moment to shine, and Jennifer's vocals are relaxed, controlled, and simply beautiful. Over-analytical some might say, but this s how I hear things. Give this song a listen, then take a second to hear her album. I promise you won't be dissapointed.

WE"RE ON FACEBOOK!!!

The music of MarcusJ is on FB and I'd love you to show your support!

Go ahead and VISIT MY PAGE, like it, and share with your friends and family.

I'm looking to expand this brand and would love all the support I can get. Thanks!


Happy New Year btw!

Talk That Talk To Me [UPDATED]

You’re one of the biggest pop starlets in the world currently, your album is reaching double platinum status, your current music tour is selling out arenas around the globe, and you’ve just been nominated for a Grammy for Album of the Year. One would expect that a well deserved holiday would soon follow, but that’s not the case at all for 23 year old star Rihanna. Almost a year to the date following her 2010 album, LOUD, Rihanna has released her creative follow-up in the form of Talk That Talk.

Rihanna, like Madonna, has never been one to fear the idea of re-inventing oneself before the release of a new album. Good Girl Gone Bad saw the singer loosening the chains on a contained image of what a pop star is, and opened her up to a wider audience, which gave her her first taste of A-list stardom. Her image then became darker and introspective with 2009‘s Rated R, and more cheerful and decidedly commercial with her last offering.

This trend of metamorphosis led fans to ponder what the singer had planned for her forthcoming release. Would she ditch the electro-pop fans became accustomed to? Would she go back to her R&B/Bajan roots? The question seemed to be answered with the release of the lead single, "We Found Love" featuring Calvin Harris. Rihanna seemingly was sticking to the dance formula that still dominates the charts to this day. Originally, TTT was conceived as a re-release of LOUD, titled LOUDer. The shift from conceiving a re-release of a dance-pop album, to an album Rihanna herself described as “GangstR”, combined with the singer ducking in and out of the studio during downtime on her tour to finish the product, results in an album that is sonically satisfying, yet indecisive on what it wants to be.

The album starts off with the second single, “You Da One”, a pleasant, if not inoffensive offering that does not necessarily offer fans anything new from the singer, but gets the job done of moving the album along. The LP kicks into high gear on the second track, “Where Have You Been” in which the bajan beauty sings about a sought-after lover over a slick dance beat that quickly turns the volume up to 11 with it’s hard-hitting chorus. The next few tracks follow in the same breadth as this and show the singer displaying her open sexuality. With lyrics like, “Suck my cockiness/Lick my persuasion”, Rihanna shows that she is fearless in expressing how she really feels about sex.

From then on, the album comes to a screeching halt with the ballad, “We All Want Love”. The Esther Dean penned song attempts to show the softer side of the singer, however its placement on the album and its stark contrast to the rest of the album makes it feel out of place; another sign it is possibly from the LOUDer project. A few more ballads follow before Talk That Talk turns to midtempo songs to close out the set.

Overall, Rihanna offers a very solid collection of music this go-around. However, there are a few problems. Some songs bear rather simple lyrics, or repeat verses to fill out a song. One song in particular, “Birthday Cake”, is not even finished, clocking in at 1:21 long with an awkward fade-out. Rihanna has promised a full version of the song in the new year, so until then, fans must wait. The album at times, seems to not have a clear direction in its spirit, and it’s very clear this was a semi-rushed project that was not properly put together. The LP in its entirety does not have a “bad” song at all. The only real problem is that it feels like 2 different albums placed together. As a fan, I still hold out hope that the next Rihanna project will come sooner than later, with a clear mind, and a new sound.

3½ out of 5 stars



UPDATE: After reviewing this post, I've decided that my score did not accurately reflect my feelings on the album. Therefore, I've decided to change my score to 4 out of five stars.

So I guess we're back again! Here goes Take 3 of this blog's revival...

Where I Wanna Be - Donell Jones (MarcusJ Cover)

So I've been asked to do YouTube videos for a while now, but I never really had the nerve to do it till I got my Mac. So here is the first in a series of cover videos I'll be uploading. I'd love for you to give comments and show some love on the YouTube site if possible.

This is a song I sang when I tried out for American Idol back in the summer of 2008. It's "Where I Wanna Be" by Donell Jones. I've always loved this song because it's actually one of the few male R&B songs I enjoy. And it's within my range :) But yeah, it's a great song and I hope you guys enjoy it.

Hiatus What????

Yeah, I took some time off, but I'm back and ready to re-tool this blog again. Just a bit. I've found myself getting more into artistic expression such as writing, photography, and music. So you're gonna start seeing new things pop up here like photos, YouTube videos, and music reviews. Hope you read and enjoy.

Music For Men.....

That's the title of the album from which this song is taken. It's from a group named Gossip and was featured as the single of the week on iTunes. As some may know, I'm currently on a mission for new music and this is a welcome addition to my library. I just love the attitude of the singer and it just makes you wanna dance. Listen and tell me what you think!

Gossip "Heavy Cross"

P.S. I don't kmow who that dude is on the cover.

*UPDATE* The person on the cover is a member of the band.

Criminally Overlooked

Ju'Not Joyner was a finalist on this season's American Idol. Here, he performed a very stripped down version of "Hey There, Delilah" by The Plain White T's. I'll admit, I hated on him so hard when this originally aired, but I have to say that I was completely wrong. This version makes me totally forget the original. The lyrics are so sweet, and sincere. They're not filled with typical metaphors and all the other stuff love songs have now-a-days. It just feels like an open letter to the woman you love. Ju'Not's pairing of these lyrics with a simple accompaniment of piano, guitar, and his effortlessly light vocals truly showcased artistry that's been missing from this industry. Even though I didn't like the performance, I still voted for him to stay and I really wished he could have stuck around to show people what it means to be a real artist. Hopefully, he'll release an EP or mixtape sometime soon, because music isn't quite the same without Ju'Not.

You can download Ju'Not's performance as an mp3 right here.

How Do You Feel About....

Ok, I was planning on blogging about a lot of other stuff such as the demise of Danity Kane, and my personal experiences with rudeness in the past week, frankly, but I'm tired. So to hold you over till the next post, I've put up this song by a guy named Jon McLaughlin.
Not many people know who he is, but some may know him as the guy who sang, "Smack Into You", a song that he didn't use and was given to Beyonce (re-titled "Smash Into You") by The-Dream (the songwriter). Anyway, this song is called "Things That You Say" from his album "OK Now". This is a phenomenal song that truly builds until the very end. It's sincere, and his voice fits the song perfectly.
I found out about him when I saw him on Perez Hilton. I decided to search out his music and was impressed enough to go out and buy the album. Basically, I loved it. He has a lot of great songs on there with great melodies that hook you. Tell me what you think about "Things That You Say" and while you're at it, give some recomendations on new music. I'm open to anything.

PS. He kinda reminds me of Kris Allen from American Idol (At least his voice does)