And now for something COMPLETELY AMAZING.

Kelly Clarkson has formed a (not-so-secret) band with her back-up singers, Jill Pickering and Kate Rapier.

WHAT? Yes. Thanks to some truly stellar investigative work this weekend, devoted Kelly stans quickly began to realize that her trip to Oklahoma on Friday to record with longtime back-up singers (and frequent songwriting collaborators) Jill and Kate was for something entirely unrelated to her upcoming fifth studio album–in fact, it’s for a new project altogether!

The newly unveiled side-project, called Already Famous (which the girls say is named after “the funniest nail polish name” they could find at Sephora), has begun their debut via a not-so-secret Twitter account and a sparse Facebook page. Only hours ago, the group themselves began fielding fan questions on Twitter.

So far the trio has already completed four songs including “I’m Not The Only One,” which they’ve just uploaded for preview in a tiny teaser video. The song sounds utterly gorgeous so far–with all those lush vocal layers, it almost sounds like an Imogen Heap production! Talk about a guaranteed addition to the nightly MuuTears playlist. (Not that I’d ever make that sort of playlist. Or listen to it. Or…LOOK, OVER THERE! IT’S JESUS!)

Kate, Kelly and Jill have written and performed dozens of tracks together in the past (many of which can be found on their joint YouTube account, JillAndKate), so it seemed like only a matter of time before the trio would come together up professionally to churn out their tracks in a studio setting.

While one of MuuMuse’s favorite soulful songstresses continues to trudge forward (despite buckets of leaks) with her oft-delayed, much anticipated fifth studio album (the lead single now due out in August, according to her latest tweets!), the good news is that there’s much more coming from Queen Clarkson in the very, very near future.

¡VIVA LA CLARKSON REVOLUCIÓN!

Thanks to MJSBigBlog and the ATRL Forums for pooling the latest updates!

Straight boy lust? Join the club.

Inspired by 1956′s classic Trapeze, the UK’s original Pop Idol Will Young finds himself strapped into some spandex and swinging on poles (of the gymnastics variety, that is) in the gorgeous video for his new Richard X-produced single (and one of my favorite tracks of 2011), “Jealousy.”

Along the way, the singer remains hopelessly devoted to a sexy, strapping young hunk of ambiguous sexual orientation spending all his time twirling about with some blonde bimbo (okay, so he’s totally straight but no one wants to admit it).

With all the choreography, underlying sexual tension and crazy stalker ‘feathers-are-sprouting-from-my-skin’ eyes he’s supplying, Young is serving some major Black Swan realness in this clip! WHAT HAPPENED TO MY SWEET WILL?!

But wait–a stolen glance at the trapeze! Is it love? A bittersweet fantasy? Trust me, Will: If it’s anything like I’ve ever experienced, grab a bottle of wine and quit while you’re ahead: It looks (and feels) like a whole lot of jealousy to me.

Like the single, Young’s highly anticipated fifth studio album Echoes–due out on August 22–was produced entirely by electro-pop extraordinaire Richard X (Annie, Goldfrapp, Sophie-Ellis Bextor), along with co-writing credits from some of pop’s cutting edge scribes. Accordingly, the album finds Young breaking into new territory by incorporating dance and electronica elements. From the album’s press release:

Will has sidestepped some of his traditional sounds to move more into the world of electronic music, making an album of sophistry and gentility that pulses with the undercurrents of the dance-floor. The sweeping strings and key changes of his hit ballads have made way for synthesised melody, towards something sparer and more controlled. ‘I had to learn to undo my musical muscle memory,’ he explains. ‘To allow space into the music.’

Will has written all but one song on ‘Echoes’ along with a personally assembled roll call of collaborators including Jim Eliot & Mima Stilwell (Kylie), Andy Cato (Groove Armada) and Pascal Gabriel (Ladyhawke).

One of my most anticipated albums of the year? Oh, methinks yes.

“Jealousy” will be released on August 21. (iTunes UK)

Okay, SO: Y’all know Beyonce‘s current single–the power ballad, “Best Thing I Never Had”? Sewww good, right?

Well, guess what?

EVERYTHING YOU’VE EVER KNOWN IN YOUR ENTIRE LIFE IS A LIE.

Okay, well–maybe not that. BUT. The original version of “Best Thing I Never Had” is completely different from the final version that wound up on the final tracklisting for Bey’s latest studio album, 4. In fact, it’s even BETTER! (LISTEN)

Just this afternoon, one of the song’s main co-writers, Patrick “j.Que” Smith, posted the original mix of “Best Thing I Never Had” on his Tumblr with the following explanation:

I’m both thrilled & grateful that #TeamBey decided to make our song the single and it sounds awesome…. But, this is what the song sounded like when we wrote it! I like this version….. Mostly because it’s not a ballad. The drums from “The Show” are what made me write to this song in the first place! Enjoy!

While a song rarely ends up sounding as originally intended, it looks like the songwriters were really gunning for “Best Thing I Never Had” to maintain its punchier, rocky mid-tempo origins. And you know what? They were right!

The original mix is a much more lively affair thanks to a kicking drum sample from Doug E Fresh & Slick Rick‘s 1985 track “The Show” (along with those gorgeous piano notes in the chorus!), adding some good ol’ ummph to Bey’s scathing “I’m so over you now” delivery. Plus, those drums makes for the perfect segue in between the stomping sounds of two of the album’s most single-ready moments: “Run The World (Girls)” and “End Of Time.”

So, um…whuh happen? Sample clearance issues? Too much drum action happening during the final stages of mixing? Did Nick Cannon catch wind of Bey’s drum-happy dreams and start sending spiked samples of MiMi‘s Lollipop Splash Remix perfume set to the Haus of Beysus?

Mayhaps, mayhaps…

“Best Thing I Never Had” was released on June 1. (iTunes)

Noted scholar Beyoncé Giselle Knowles once famously posed the question: “Who run the world?” The answer according to many–including Doctor Rosen Rosen–remains loud and clear: GIRLS.

The up-and-coming writer, producer and remix extraordinaire (a prominent feature within such official remix packages as Lady Gaga‘s “Telephone” and Natalia Kills‘ “Mirrors”) is now set to prescribe his debut EP to the masses: GIRLS: VOLUME 1.

Containing four songs, the good doctor’s first-ever compilation benefits from a vocal assist from four of pop’s most promising bubbling-under females, including 3 single-monikered songstresses: Meg, Kay and Anjulie.

Kicking off the collection, however, is “Five O’Clock,” a collaboration with mannequin-minded, leotard-loving L.A. songstress, Jessie And The Toy Boys. (She’s certainly been seeing a lot of love ’round these parts lately, eh?)

Regarding the record, Doctor Rosen Rosen had this to say about his time spent recording with Miss Toy Boys:

Around that time, I was listening to a lot of the 80s girls groups that were produced by Prince (Vanity 6, Sheila E, Appolonia), which inspired the punchy Linndrum-sample-heavy beat of the song. A day before our session, I started the track and came up with the pre-chorus “Hello Hello Hello.” I was nervous to show her the idea because she was one of the first artists I worked with in Los Angeles, but she was in to it and we quickly wrote the rest of the song together. One of the things I love about working with Jessie, is that her lyrics always engaging and paint a vivid story… in this case “you’ve got till five o’clock to get your shit out.

Five O’Clock (feat. Jessie & The Toy Boys) by DOCTOR ROSEN ROSEN

The song is a slap-happy bout of tongue-twisting, fire-spitting lyrical jabs and hyper-speed space-pop, crossing together the bouncy ’80′s funk-lust of Vanity 6 and the rowdy grrrl rebellion of Le Tigre. “I don’t want to be a hater, but you ain’t a pro skater / But you’re a bus boy at Denny’s, you’re not even a waiter.” BURN.

Best of all? You can snag the song above entirely for free!

The full tracklisting for GIRLS: VOLUME 1 is as follows:

1. “Five O’ Clock” ft. Jessie & The Toy Boys
2. “Adelaide” ft. Meg”
3. “Hot” – ft. Kay
4. “Wait” ft. Anjulie

And, if you’re impatient/curious/bored, you can view a rather kewl video of the Doctor spinning a hot pink vinyl of the collection, featuring a few seconds from each individual track. Sounds promising!

Liking the idea so far? Well, good: Doctor Rosen Rosen plans to carry on with this kind of release all the way through to sometime next year, with Volume 2 expected to hit in November, Volume 3 in February, and Volume 4 due out around next May.

GIRL POWER!

Girls: Volume 1 will be released on August 15. (Official Website)

Another day, another drama…

In helping to celebrate Blackout Purchase Week (have you entered the MuuMuse giveaway yet?), MuuMuse is proud to present “Blackout Once Again: A Look Back at Britney Spears’ Greatest Album,” an incredibly comprehensive, in-depth examination of Britney‘s fifth studio album, written by Vertigo Shtick‘s David Salter.

If there’s anything to be said about Blackout, it’s featured here in this extraordinary piece. A must read, Muusers!

Please click “Read More…” to see the full article. (MOAH!)

Read more »

You know that fuzzy feeling you get in your chest when one of your favorite flawless pop stars does something flawless?

PRINCESS RIRI: YOU DONE DID IT TO ME AGAIN, GIRL.

Check out these stunning shots of Lady Fenty serving it full-on while rocking Marc Jacobs, Givenchy, Yves Saint Laurent and many more couturiers for the September 2011 issue of Glamour, all photographed by one of my all-time favorites–the inimitable Ellen von Unwerth.

There’s also a bunch of really glorious RiRi quotes accompanying each photograph. At least one of these quotes will serve as a future Facebook status update, including (but not limited to)…

“I hate drama. But at the same time, nothing bothers me more than when life’s perfect. And that’s the sick part. I just love a challenge, whether it’s a relationship, my career, clothing…”

“I think honesty is the ultimate liberation in life. People want to shy away from the truth and keep sweeping it under the rug. But after a while, you pick up the rug and there’s just way too much dirt, so you might as well just be up front about it.”

“I want to set the right example and, at the same time, live my life….I feel like pop stars can’t be rock stars anymore because they have to be role models, and it takes the fun out of it for us, because we just want to have fun with art.”

FLAWLESS. God, she’s good. So proud to be a card-carrying Navy member! G4L!

WHEN WILL THAT RIHANNA REIGN LET UP? ANSWER: LITERALLY NEVER.

Margaret Berger is feeling the love.

Earlier today, the Nordic pop songstress tweeted a link to a SoundCloud stream of “4-E.V.E.R.L.O.V.E,” the delightfully lush B-side featured on the limited 7″ vinyl release of her latest single, “In A Box.” (Check out her gender-bending video for “In A Box” now.)

Just like the bulk of her back catalog, “4-E.V.E.R.L.O.V.E.” is nothing short of pop perfection, littered with robo-speak and cool disco-tronica grooves. Berger bounces along a Tomas Nerbø Smågesjø-produced (don’t ask me to pronounce it) beat with all the Scandinavian electro-swagger of Robyn–not to mention the spelling lust of a one Miss Nicola Roberts!

“4-E.V.E.R.L.O.V.E” is a hypnotic little disco-glazed tune perfectly fit for a mid-summer stroll–just enough to tide us over until the next single arrives (which is rumored to appear later this summer.)

4-E.V.E.R L.O.V.E by Margaret Berger

And speaking of, MuuMuse would like to send all of our love to Norway. Our thoughts and prayers are with you!

I know it’s summer in the city and the sun is high, so why not cool it down (or heat it up!) with a little extra summer lovin’ from one of MuuMuse’s favorite up-and-coming pop vixens…Mizz Jessie And The Toy Boys!

While the Toy Boy-minded songstress is currently gallivanting ’round the country as the opening act on Godney‘s Femme Fatale Tour along with NERVO and Nicki Minaj, Jessie’s also been hard at work cranking out brand new tunes for all her Fannequins.

Most recent of all? The Show Me Your Tan Lines EP, her super-fresh 6-track collection of gritty, naughty bubblegum electro-pop tunes released in June.

For your dance-around-your-room-in-your-underwear pleasure, Jessie is now Excluusively giving away two tracks for free on MuuMuse: The EP’s namesake, “Summer Boy,” and her debut single: “Push It” (The explicit version, but of course!)

Please go ahead and enjoy! And remember, if you’re digging these beats, grab the full EP on iTunes!

The Show Me Your Tan Lines EP was released on June 14. (iTunes)