Christina Aguilera’s ‘Lotus’: Album Review

	“I look at my reflection and embrace the woman I’ve become. The unbreakable lotus in me, I now set free,” Christina Aguilera pompously declares over a volley of electronic bleeps and beeps in the dramatic introduction to her fifth studio album. Let’s face it. Subtlety was never the 31-year-old’s strong point. From the Anne Geddes-on-crack cover art to the half dozen songs about overcoming adversity, the former Mouseketeer wants the world to know that she survived the toxic post-Bionic terrain and is now ready to – excuse the awful plant metaphor – bloom again. While the boulder on Xtina’s shoulder is exhausting at times, Lotus (out today, November 13) is indeed a return to form. The four-time Grammy winner pulls together a cohesive set of songs that showcase her powerful pipes and remind us why she once shared the top rung of the pop ladder with Beyonce, Pink and Britney. Christina back-pedals from the polarizing experimentalism of Bionic this time around. Lotus is by no means boring, but it does sound safe by comparison. There are a few blinding dance-pop gems, there’s a sprinkling of lite-rock and even the occasional urban influence. But the emphasis is overwhelmingly on ballads. Team Aguilera knows that the big-lunged diva’s voice sets her apart from the competition, and they’ve taken every opportunity to show it off. With an instrument as powerful as this, there is an understandable temptation to over-sing but — with a couple of notable exceptions — the Voice judge manages to keep it under control. As a result, she turns in some of the best vocal performances of her career. It’s just a shame Xtina hasn’t realized that she can demonstrate her vocal superiority just as effectively by singing uptempo tunes, because the dance tracks on Lotus are great. Everyone from Lady Gaga to Marina & The Diamonds has raved about “Your Body,” and it’s hard to disagree. The Max Martin/Shellback-produced anthem is an adrenalin-charged shot of dance-pop that proves once and for all that Christina can fit into the 2012 pop soundscape. However, the fact that it underperformed on the charts is alarming. The only other song with similar breakout hit potential is the other Max Martin/Shellback contribution, “Let There Be Love” — an unbearably cute pop song that sweeps Xtina away on a wave of synths to unfamiliar Eurodance territory. It turns out to be the perfect destination for the diva’s powerhouse pipes. We think it should be released as the next single, but the double punch of Swedish-helmed pop would wildly misrepresent the album. The rest of Xtina’s Lotus petals couldn’t be more different.  Take the two collaborations with her fellow judges on The Voice: Initially the idea struck us as a rather inelegant publicity stunt, but it speaks volumes for Christina’s versatility that she’s equally at home sharing vocals with Cee Lo Green on the old-school soul of “Make The World Move” as she is belting out a gorgeous country ballad with Blake Shelton. It’s something of a shock that the latter is vastly better. While the Cee Lo track sounds like a throwback to Back To Basics, Xtina could give Kelly Clarkson a run for her money as pop’s crossover country queen with “Just A Fool.” This is a soaring lighters-in-the-air love song of the highest caliber. Another standout is “Sing For Me.” The reflective ballad could well document the months Christina spent alone in her room singing “Beautiful” to herself after Bionic dropped. Here she delivers a nuclear-powered vocal, singing, “When I open my mouth, my whole heart comes out.” On the evidence of this, it’s hard to disagree. The Step-produced screamer walks the fine line between exploring her hurt over the Bionic backlash and the woe-is-me territory she occasionally veers into on some of the album’s worst tracks. If nothing else, “Sing For Me” proves Christina is still the Gabby Douglas of vocal gymnastics. There are runs on this song that Mariah would consider over-the-top, but, in this context, they work. The Sia-penned “Blank Page” reveals that Xtina is indeed capable of toning it down when the material calls for it. Given the Sia’s singer-songwriter’s alternative leanings, it’s surprising that this is the album’s most straightforward ballad. It harks back to the torch songs of old — “Blank Page” sounds like it could have just as easily been recorded in 1972 — with its yearning lyrics and sparse production courtesy of Chris Braide. The pretty plea for love might be too different for Top 40 radio, but it deserves to reach a wider audience. Alex Da Kid is Christina’s most frequent collaborator on Lotus, yet his contributions are more miss than hit. “Cease Fire” is a booming electronic/dub-step-infused mid-tempo mess. Think a Ryan Tedder ballad (Kelly Clarkson’s “Already Gone,” Beyonce’s “Halo,” etc) over white noise. It takes a few listens to click, but the chorus eventually seeps through the challenging production. Elsewhere, “Best Of Me” is a blatant swipe at her critics. “I feel the weight of your hate, I still bleed, my heart aches,” she laments. It lacks the charm of “Sing For Me,”coming across as a pity party set to music. While underwhelming, those contributions are Grammy-worthy gems in comparison to Da Kid’s third Lotus production. Remember when people used to flip you the bird at school and say something witty like “rotate” before flicking their hair and walking off? Well, Christina has devoted an entire song to that classy insult. “Spin around on circles on my middle finger,” demands the dirrty diva over a trippy smattering of industrial beats and drums. It sounds like fluffiest Nine Inch Nails song ever recorded. Let’s be honest: The song is a total trainwreck, but there’s something amusing about Xtina putting her haters in their place. Add “Circles” to your WTF Christina? playlist between “Sex For Breakfast” and “Vanity.” The rest of Lotus is best described as quality filler. “Army Of Me” wouldn’t have sounded out of place on Bionic. Christina openly refers to it as “Fighter 2.0,” and she’s not exaggerating. “It’s time you had a taste of losing, it’s time the tables turned around” is typical of the lyrical terrain. She goes hard on the vocal of what can best be described as a sparse electro-mantra. It doesn’t have the hook of the song it’s paying homage to, but it’s a quirky addition to album. “Red Hot Kinda Love” is one of the few moments when Christina abandons her I’m back, bitches! agenda and just has fun. She coos over a bass-heavy track to the man of her dreams, revisiting her love for retro music – think of this as the album’s “Ain’t No Other Man.” Meanwhile, “Around The World” is another inoffensive adventure that scores extra points for quoting lyrics from “Lady Marmalade.” It just lacks the big pop hook need to wreak havoc on the charts. As with Bionic, Christina relegates some of her best songs to bonus status. “Light Up The Sky” is Alex Da Kid’s best contribution to the album. It begins as a simple piano ballad before exploding into a multi-layered lung-buster. The song retains a pop sensibility that some of the other tracks lack, and will no doubt appeal to fans of ballad-mode Xtina. “Shut Up” is a slightly abrasive and literal response to the haters but, unlike “Circles,” still has an incredibly catchy chorus. Someone like Pink could probably get away with releasing “Shut Up” as a single. Alas, it’s probably destined for cult status with Christina. Overall, Aguilera puts tried and tested methods ahead of innovation on Lotus and delivers tracks that should win back fans who were put off by the Bionic era. Our only concern is the lack of obvious hits. In a Katy Perry world where a fifth or sixth single can still top the charts, a pop album seemingly needs to be a veritable greatest hits collection. That said, nothing here really stands out past the Max Martin/Shellback tracks. Perhaps one of the ballads will catch fire on radio and help rack up decent sales. At the very least, Lotus hopefully completes the rehabilitation of Christina Aguilera. She deals with the Bionic backlash extensively in the lyrics and puts the haters in their place. (Get ready to spin, baby!) Surely it’s time to leave the drama in the past and welcome back one of the most-loved divas of the early 2000s?

Has 'The Voice' Already Re-Signed Christina Aguilera? TheWrap reports that Xtina is onboard for season three, which could debut in the fall opposite 'X Factor.'

	We are only two episodes into the second season of "The Voice," and already there is some news about the hit NBC show's third season. According to TheWrap, Christina Aguilera has signed a contract to continue her stint on the judging panel for a third season of the singing competition. Aguilera is the first of the four judges to ink her deal, a payday for which is supposedly in the $10 million realm. TheWrap also reports that the third season could premiere in the fall rather than waiting until 2013; this would potentially put "The Voice" in direct competition with Fox's "X Factor." When MTV News reached out for comment from NBC, a show insider said no decision has been made about season three. It is expected that Aguilera's fellow judges Cee Lo Green, Adam Levine and Blake Shelton will all renew their contracts in the coming weeks and that the third season will tape from September through December of this year. "The Voice" has proven to be a major hit for NBC. The season-two premiere following the Super Bowl on Sunday earned NBC's best ratings for an entertainment show in six years. Monday's episode earned the network's best numbers for that particular timeslot in nearly eight years, save for broadcasts of the Olympics. When MTV News caught up with the show's new social media correspondent Christina Milian recently, the singer/actress gushed about the lovefest on set. "It's been fabulous. I've had fun working with the cast already," she said. "Christina Aguilera, Blake Shelton, Adam Levine, Cee Lo, Carson Daly — it's an awesome super team they have, and from day one, they treated me like family. "This show is about music, it's about talent, and it's about this passion and this dream of becoming a star," Milian added. "Still to this day, every day that I wake up, I have that same dream, so to be involved with the show, [it's amazing] to watch what they incorporate and how the coaches act as advisers and mentors to the artists and really truthfully help them and push them and want them to be the best so they can win."

The 100 Greatest Songs of ‘00s [COMPLETE LIST]

	100. Sisqó / Thong Song 99. Carrie Underwood / Before He Cheats 98. 3 Doors Down / Kryptonite 97. Shaggy / It Wasn’t Me 96. Pussycat Dolls ft Busta Rhymes / Don’t Cha 95. James Blunt / You’re Beautiful 94. Daughtry / It’s Not Over 93. OK Go / Here It Goes Again 92. Flo Rida ft T-Pain / Low 91. Creed / With Arms Wide Open 90. Mystikal / Shake Ya Ass 89. M.I.A. / Paper Planes 88. Fountains of Wayne / Stacy’s Mom 87. The Darkness / I Believe in a Thing Called Love 86. Aerosmith / Jaded 85. Macy Gray / I Try 84. Linkin Park / In the End 83. D’Angelo / Untitled (How Does It Feel) 82. Matchbox Twenty / Unwell 81. Bruce Springsteen / The Rising 80. Lil Jon & the East Side Boyz ft Ying Yang Twins / Get Low 79. Enrique Iglesias / Hero 78. Plain White T’s / Hey There Delilah 77. Nickelback / How You Remind Me 76. T.I. ft Rihanna / Live Your Life 75. Gavin DeGraw / I Don’t Want to Be 74. Chamillionaire ft Krayzie Bone / Ridin’ 73. Nelly Furtado ft Timbaland / Promiscuous 72. Jet / Are You Gonna Be My Girl 71. Colbie Caillat / Bubbly 70. Chris Brown ft Juelz Santana / Run It! 69. Evanescence / Bring Me to Life 68. Ludacris ft Shawnna / Stand Up 67. Leona Lewis / Bleeding Love 66. Snoop Dogg ft Pharrell / Drop It Like It’s Hot 65. Aaliyah / Try Again 64. Jennifer Lopez ft Ja Rule / I’m Real (Murder Remix) 63. Andrew W.K. / Party Hard 62. Avril Lavigne / Complicated 61. Kelis / Milkshake 60. Ke$ha / Tik Tok 59. Justin Timberlake / Cry Me a River 58. Jason Mraz / I’m Yours 57. Mary J. Blige / Family Affair 56. DMX / Party Up (Up In Here) 55. The Killers / Mr. Brightside 54. Norah Jones / Don’t Know Why 53. Blink-182 / All the Small Things 52. Shakira ft Wyclef / Hips Don’t Lie 51. Natasha Bedingfield / Pocketful of Sunshine 50. Taylor Swift / You Belong With Me 49. Lady Gaga / Bad Romance 48. Kings Of Leon / Sex On Fire 47. Christina Aguilera, Lil’ Kim, Mya, Pink / Lady Marmalade 46. Kid Rock & Sheryl Crow / Picture 45. Eve ft Gwen Stefani / Let Me Blow Ya Mind 44. Red Hot Chili Peppers / Californication 43. Katy Perry / I Kissed A Girl 42. Train / Drops Of Jupiter (Tell Me) 41. R. Kelly / Trapped In The Closet 40. Fall Out Boy / Sugar, We’re Goin Down 39. Adele / Chasing Pavements 38. Miley Cyrus / Party In The U.S.A. 37. Britney Spears / Oops! …I Did It Again 36. *NSYNC / Bye Bye Bye 35. John Mayer / Daughters 34. Janet Jackson / All For You 33. Johnny Cash / Hurt 32. Maroon 5 / This Love 31. Amy Winehouse / Rehab 30. Gwen Stefani / Hollaback Girl 29. Foo Fighters / Best Of You 28. Madonna / Music 27. Usher ft Lil Jon and Ludacris / Yeah! 26. The White Stripes / Seven Nation Army 25. Nelly / Hot in Herre 24. Missy Elliott / Get Ur Freak On 23. Pink / Get the Party Started 22. Alicia Keys / Fallin’ 21. Jay-Z / 99 Problems 20. Britney Spears / Toxic 19. Destiny’s Child / Bootylicious 18. Christina Aguilera / Beautiful 17. Coldplay / Clocks 16. Beyoncé / Single Ladies (Put A Ring On It) 15. U2 / Beautiful Day 14. Gnarls Barkley / Crazy 13. Green Day / American Idiot 12. Black Eyed Peas / I Gotta Feeling 11. Rihanna ft Jay-Z / Umbrella 10. 50 Cent / In Da Club 9. Mariah Carey / We Belong Together 8. Jay-Z ft Alicia Keys / Empire State Of Mind 7. Justin Timberlake ft Timbaland / SexyBack 6. Kanye West ft Jamie Foxx / Gold Digger 5. Kelly Clarkson / Since U Been Gone 4. Eminem / Lose Yourself 3. Lady Gaga / Poker Face 2. OutKast / Hey Ya! 1. Beyoncé ft Jay-Z / Crazy In Love

CHRISTINA AGUILERA Hairstyle

	Full name: Christina Maria Aguilera. Born: December 18, 1980, Staten Island, NY. Her family later settled in the Pittsburgh suburb of Wexford. Star sign: Sagittarius. Parents: Separated. Irish-American Shelly is a pianist and violinist who now runs Christina's fan club. Ecuadorian descendent Jim works for the military. Christina has two younger brothers and sisters. Education: Graduated from high school in Wexford, Pittsburgh. Love life: Dated Jorges Santos, one of her dancers. Linked with Enrique Iglesias. Trivia: Childhood idol was Julie Andrews. Is set to launch a Christina Aguilera cosmetics line with Fetish to include three fragrances, make-up, body creams and bath items (out Stateside January 2001). When she returned to her home town to attend the high school prom she was shunned by the other girls. Got her RCA record deal at 15. Has a passion for strawberry margaritas.

Justin Bieber, 'Under The Mistletoe': Track-By-Track Review

On Nov. 10, 1998, *NSYNC released "Home For Christmas," a holiday disc that featured a whole mess of new material, including the saccharine lead single, "Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays." It was a smart cash-in for the best-selling boy band: with some faithful covers and a few harmless originals, "Home For Christmas" essentially acted as a stopgap between the group's breakout album from the previous year and their most successful album, 2000's "No Strings Attached," which still owns the record for most albums sold in a single week with over 2.4 million copies sold, according to Nielsen SoundScan.

After "My World 2.0" resulted in a universal bout of Bieber Fever, Justin Bieber appears to be using "Under The Mistletoe," his just-released debut holiday effort, as a way to set up his sure-to-be-huge next album, out sometime next year. The difference between "Home For Christmas" and "Under The Mistletoe"? Well, Bieber's Christmas album is a pretty great pop record in its own right. Consider "Under The Mistletoe" Justin Bieber's concept album, of sorts: a sticky-sweet tour of hook-laden R&B music that just happens to focus on Christmas, "Mistletoe" finds Bieber still treating his songwriting with as much care as he would on any standard solo album. Some of the gimmicks work (the silky Boyz II Men collaboration "Fa La La") and some don't (the Busta Rhymes head-scratcher "Drummer Boy"), but original cuts like "Only Thing I Ever Get For Christmas" and "All I Want Is You" are fairly immaculate collections of warm sound beds and impressive singing.

Justin Bieber: The Billboard Cover Story

Does "Under The Mistletoe" contain replay value outside of the holiday season? Probably not; it's hard to imagine Bieber fanatics jamming to "Mistletoe" on their way to the beach next summer. But what "Under The Mistletoe" crucially establishes is the idea that Bieber could turn his blockbuster teenage years into a successful adult career; after all, the singer holds his own with Mariah Carey, the Band Perry and Usher on this album, and continues to find a home in the mainstream R&B found here. "Under The Mistletoe" shows Bieber growing up, and hints at the promising -- perhaps even critically appreciated -- future in front of him. After all, did anyone consider Justin Timberlake a serious musical artist when "Home For Christmas" came out just shy of 13 years ago? 

Which songs on "Under The Mistletoe" stand up next to Justin Bieber's best work? Here's our Twitter-length track-by-track review of each song.






1. Only Thing I Ever Get For Christmas - A mid-tempo romantic ode that's more relaxed and engaging than "Mistletoe," and should have been the lead single.





2. Mistletoe - Sure, the Jason Mraz digs are warranted, and the lyrics aren't high art. But "Mistletoe's" gentle acoustic strumming sounds cozy in the context of the album.

3. The Christmas Song (Chestnuts Roasting on an Open Fire) - Justin's first chance to flash his maturing vocals, and his big bro, Usher, stops by to tell the Biebs know that "Santa's on his way." Understated, save the weird guitar solo.

4. Santa Claus Is Coming To Town - Bieber opts for a bit of Motown flair -- funk guitar! call-and-return vocals! -- on this holiday staple. The "Shake it, shake it, baby's" are a nicely playful touch.

5. Fa La La - The production pops on this Boyz II Men collaboration, which features unfussy harmonies and a smooth R&B vibe as warm and tasty as a batch of Christmas cookies fresh from the oven.
6. All I Want For Christmas Is You (Superfestive!) - We give Justin props for trying to go all out in a higher register and recreate this modern classic with Mariah Carey's help. But, alas, the original still trumps it easily.




7. Drummer Boy - Certainly the weirdest "Mistletoe" track, "Drummer Boy" combines the Christmas classic, Bieber rapping about how he "only spit heat," and a Busta Rhymes verse that ends with "Happy Hanukkah!"
8. Christmas Eve - Chris Brown snagged a writing credit on this slow jam, and his rhythmic pop fingerprints are all over it. Unintentional comedy highlight: the earnest promise "Leave some cookies out! I'mma eat 'em all, eat 'em all, eat 'em all…"

9. All I Want Is You - Lovely guitar work highlights the overall pop genius of this open-hearted apology: pristine percussion, a powerful chorus and one of Justin's most striking vocal performances to date.

10. Home This Christmas - After working with Rascal Flatts earlier this year, Bieber hooks up with another country artist, the Band Perry, for this wistful ballad. Sadly, the lyrics here are almost unbearably generic.

11. Silent Night - Bieber. Piano. "Silent Night." It's a simple ending to a flashy holiday disc, but the tried-and-true strategy works here.

by: Billboard.com

my top ten Music Artist

	watch out guys because im gonna reveal the top ten music artist for 2011. top ten pinoy artist and top ten international artist. on december 25 2011 or you can vote your favorite artist just type your favorite artist name and the song and tell me why did you like this artist and the song thank you.......

ZIA QUIZON "AKO NA LANG" music video

	With her sweet voice, this young lady's definitely one to watch. 2 Comments Add Yours For a minute, ignore the showbiz connection (in case you don't know, she's the youngest daughter of Dolphy and Zsa Zsa Padilla) and simply focus on the music. Which is not exactly difficult to do, because this is music that will make you sit up and say "wow." Nineteen-year-old Zia Quizon is the freshest performer to hit the local circuit, and we already have high hopes for her. With a voice that's reminiscent of Up Dharma Down's Armi Millare, we can't wait for Zia to steal the show. Watch the music video for "Ako Na Lang"