03 Aug

Posted at 14:39h in Uncategorised

In the past I have not been the biggest Beyonce fan, Destiny’s Child never really did it for me and when the ladies went solo I always preferred Kelly Rowland’s music. However there is no disputing the fact that ‘Queen B‘ is an absolute superstar! Her recent genius move of releasing a suprise visual album on ITunes demonstrated that not only is she on top of her game musically, she is ahead of the game when it comes to marketing herself and understanding the music business.

Things were all going so well; she had smashed another international #1 album, sold out a global arena tour and then came the ‘elevator’ incident with husband Jay Z and sister Solange – which did not look good for anyone involved! However Beyonce handled the fallout like a pro, publicly stating that she is part of a normal family and sometimes people fall out!

In a genius move she has addressed the issue head on in the lyrics to this fresh new remix of ‘Flawless‘ which features Nikki Minaj, where she explains, ‘We escalate up in this bitch like elevators, of course sometimes shit goes down when it’s a billion dollars on the elevator.’. I always think it’s an admirable thing when artists address negative publicity head on and aren’t afraid to talk about it, not only is this a great track, co-produced by Hit Boy and Boots but it shows a ‘human’ side to the international icon.

Exploring the flaws of her recent family feud has definitley propelled Beyonce one step closer to being ‘Flawless’….enjoy!

Carly – ann (@CarlyMond)

Beyonce feat Nicki Minaj – Flawless Remix

 

 

 

28 Dec

Posted at 15:01h in Blog, Carly-ann Mond

Occasionally great albums go unnoticed and are missed for some reason, I have just discovered one of the best albums I’ve heard all year which was released last month but seems to have been widely overlooked- ‘Saint Heron.‘ It’s a compilation album released by Solange Knowle’s label; Saint Records and features 11 independent artists including Solange herself, Sampha, Cassie and Jhene Aiko.

This is no ordinary compilation, it is organic RnB; soulful and eclectic, every track is unique in style yet they all compliment each other beautifully. It is a great showcase of emerging talent in the genre and has led me to discover artists I hadn’t previously heard like BC Kingdom and Kelela, it also shows Cassie taking her music in a much more soulful, mature direction so looking forward to new material from her.

There is an energy about the album that’s exhilarating, these artists are all making their music their way and it acts as a teaser leaving you wanting more from all of them. If you want to here something fresh and soulful get a copy of Saint Heron now – it will not disappoint!

BC Kingdom- Lock Up