Sounds like: Rihanna, Jessie J
Genre: Pop, Dub-pop

Prepare for the rise of Rita Ora.

After catching the eye and ear of an A&R in London, the 21-year-old Kosovo-born, U.K.-bred songstress was introduced to Jay-Z in New York and soon signed to Roc Nation (Rihanna style!) back in 2009.

Since then, she’s been working with just every heavy-hitter in the pop industry to craft her upcoming 2012 debut, including Ester Dean, The-Dream and Stargate.

Admittedly, I wasn’t too bowled over by Ora’s lead US single which premiered recently on Z100: “How We Do (Party)” (originally titled “Party & Bullshit), a carbon copy of the Katy Perry “Teenage Dream”/Jessie J “Domino” strumming power-pop formula. It’s a hit, for sure…but, well, it’s been done to death at this point.

Her debut UK single “R.I.P.,” however, tickles my fancy far more: Penned by Drake, produced by Chase & Status and Stargate and featuring Tinie Tempah (that enough talent in one track for you?), the dubstep-infused number sounds a lot like something off of RiRi’s Rated R, featuring gritty guitar licks and dark, searing synths. “R.I.P to the girl you used to see/Her days are over!” Ora declares.

With powerful pipes and a bevy of top song scribes at her disposal, Rita Ora’s got plenty of potential to take over in 2012 as one of the newest pop princesses. You ready?

Just one year after releasing the sizzling “What’s My Name?” in October of 2010, Drake and Rihanna have teamed up once again for another incredible collaboration: “Take Care,” the Jamie XX (The XX)-produced lead single off of Drake’s upcoming studio album of the same name.

Though his most popular tunes tend to be big, bossy rap tracks like “Over” and “Headlines,” Drake truly proves himself a true innovator with his unique brand of spook-R&B, including the masterfully moody “Marvin’s Room” from earlier this year (which resulted in JoJo‘s own cover of the song, otherwise known as one of the greatest songs of the year.)

Now the Canadian rapper/crooner has done it once again–this time with RiRi’s help. And Gil Scott-Heron.

“I know you been hurt by someone else, I can tell by the way you carry yourself,” the Barbadian princess gently sings. The lyrics come courtesy of “I’ll Take Care Of You,” written by the late jazz-soul poet who died earlier this year.

Underneath Ri’s vocals, the song bursts with gentle disco pulsations and piano melodies, as if briefly sampling a taste of Hercules & Love Affair…or more appropriately, The XX. After all, “Take Care” also samples producer Jamie XX’s own remix of “I’ll Take Care Of You” as featured on 2011′s We’re New Here, a remix album based on Scott-Heron’s 2010 record, I’m New Here.

Just as with Rihanna’s feature on Coldplay‘s upcoming Mylo Xyloto single “Princess of China,” “Take Care” finds Rihanna singing in a way she hasn’t really explored before. But whereas her Coldplay collabo found RiRi pushing herself to emotional new heights, “Take Care” finds the singer experiencing all-time levels of sexy–sensuously purring above the minimal beats.

Pounding drum patterns soon break up the beats and pour into the mix, bringing to mind the gorgeous bleakness of Kanye West‘s My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy (especially considering West’s own sample of Scott-Heron in “Who Will Survive in America”), and even Rihanna’s own “The Last Song” off of Rated R.

Once Drake takes command of his own song, the drums beat harder as his rhymes grow progressively faster. “When you’re ready, just say you’re ready/When all the baggage just ain’t as heavy,” Drake tenderly croons back at one point during his verse. It’s gorgeous, haunting and largely unforgettable: This is next level hip-hop.

At this point, there’s no denying the spark of magic between the two: Come for the chemistry, stay for the lasting chills.

Take Care will be released on November 15. (iTunes)

Last night, Princess Rihanna took center stage at the Staples Center in Los Angeles to perform at the NBA All Star Game halftime show.

Kicking off the event with an orchestral version of her 2007 worldwide smash, “Umbrella,” the fiery femme worked through a medley of her baddest new tunes, including “Only Girl (In The World)” and “Rude Boy.”

Then, as the opening notes of “What’s My Name?” kicked in, Drake popped up for a surprise delivery of his part on the track. “I switch it up ’cause I got something to say / We gon’ have some fun tonight, baby / Happy birthday!” Drake improvised at the end of his verse, reducing the Barbadian beauty to a fit of giggles and grins throughout the song.

And then–MORE SURPRISES! As the neon lights grew skittering and spastic, Kanye West rose from the stage for a surprise performance of “All Of The Lights,” featuring an assist from Lady RiRi. He absolutely smashed it–an amazing way to end the show!

Even though her vocals weren’t the greatest, the performance was still an absolute blast. OH! And…

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, RIRI!

It’s that magical time of self-celebratory circle jerking again: The 2011 Grammy Awards!

And for the first time in, like, forever…it was mostly a good time! There were a lot of performances, and at least half of them were pretty entertaining.

Let’s take a walk through some of the more memorable moments of the night, shall we?

Read More…

Here we go again: The end of another year in music!

2010 may well be remembered as the Year of the Future (if not the Year of All Hearts–hint hint!): A year of fembots, androids, bionic women and time-traveling adventures deep into the 22nd century.

Space-age love stories and robo-dramatics colored a large portion of the year’s biggest releases in pop, no doubt a response to the reign of the machine on the pop charts as synth-pop productions continued to dominate the digital airwaves in 2010.

Below is the list of MuuMuse’s Top Albums of 2010, which was based on a variety of factors–from individual song and single goodness, to the complete album experience, to overall artistic integrity, to an album’s ability to ‘stick’ as the year progressed. Basically I’m trying to say that it’s a bit of a hot mess, but I tried my very best.

There’s also a rather controversial dishonorable mention prior to the Top 40 list that will likely blow my chances for that much coveted position as editor of Rolling Stone. DAMN IT.

Now…LET’S DO THIS.

Without further ado…the list!

I first discovered Nicki Minaj back in December of 2009 through a promotional video for “Itty Bitty Piggy,” one of the tracks off of Minaj’s 2009 mixtape, Beam Me Up Scotty.

Gum snapping, eyes rolling, breasticles ready to burst from her tight blouse at any given moment–I knew it was love at first sight.

Read More…

Oh na, na, na, na!

It’s the video premiere for my Barbadian princess RiRi‘s latest single (and currently the #1 song on the Hot 100), “What’s My Name”! (WATCH)

Here are some things that I love about the video:

+ RIRI LOVES MILK!1!!1!
+ Her hair (still.) Lick my nine, haters–it continues to look amazing and fabulous.
+ Her face (still.)
+ The colors/cinematography/camerawork. Nice job, Philip Andelman!
+ The awkward, somewhat sexy chemistry between Drake and Rihanna.
As Kylie might note: “You’re more than a friend, and almost a lover…”
+ HIP TWERK, HIP TWERK, REPEAT. “Rude Boy” hips forever, please.
+ The awkward NYC crowds in the background during the street scenes that are clearly there
to gawk at Rihanna while she’s filming.
+ That slightly hedonistic, red smoke-filled jam session at the video’s end.

Here are some things that I don’t love about the video:

+ Nothing.

In conclusion: P-E-R-F-E-C-T-I-O-N.

“What’s My Name?” was released on November 1. (iTunes)

In case you haven’t heard, the second single from Rihanna‘s upcoming album, LOUD, has surfaced…AND IT’S FANTASTIC.

Featuring an extended opening assist by former Degrassi star Aubrey Drake Graham, “What’s My Name” is a darker, island-inspired mid-tempo that plays like the perfect missing link between Rated R‘s “Rude Boy” and “Te Amo.”

Aside from the song’s delicious dark-synths-meets-island-groove beat, the lyrics are pure sass, thanks to the ever-unstoppable Ester Dean (“Rude Boy”; “Peacock”) behind the pen: “Hey boy, I really wanna see if you can go downtown with a girl like me,” the Barbadian beauty taunts during the track’s catchy chorus.

While perhaps not as immediate of a banga as “Only Girl (In The World)” or “Rude Boy,” “What’s My Name” is as thoroughly satisfying and repeat-worthy (and then some!) as the rest of the music Madame Ri has produced over the past few years.

Oh RiRi–you simply cannot do any wrong in my eyes!

LOUD will be released on November 16. Rihanna’s latest single, “Only Girl (In The World)” was released on September 13. (iTunes)