So here’s a post I’ve meant to do for over a month.

Jessica Mauboy is the runner-up from the fourth season of Australian Idol.

For those who haven’t encountered her name yet in their musical journey, a very brief history: Jessica Mauboy has a very listenable and melodic voice, comparable to that of Jordin Sparks, Alexandra Burke or Charice. Following her exit from Idol, the singer released her electro-tinged R&B debut in 2008, Been Waiting. The record spawned about a half dozen radio smashes, including the two very good singles that first caught my attention two years ago: “Been Waiting” and “Burn.”

On November 5 of this year, Mauboy released Get ‘Em Girls, the follow-up to her debut. ‘Urban’-flared and even more radio-friendly than her first album, Get ‘Em Girls nearly bursts at the seams with a dizzying array of American and Australian producers and co-writers, including Bangladesh, Harvey Mason Jr., Audius, Brian Kennedy and even the legendary Billy Steinberg (who penned Madonna‘s “Like A Virgin”)–not to mention the artist guest list, featuring Snoop Dogg, Ludacris and Iyaz. Not too shabby!

Though a somewhat eclectic bunch, the talent medley totally worked for Mauboy, resulting in a what proved to be one of the better albums of the year. (See–it even made the MuuMuse Top 40 list!)

Two songs from the album have already been released as singles (“Saturday Night (feat. Ludacris)” and “Get ‘Em Girls (feat. Snoop Dogg)”), although both songs were coupled with shoe-string budget clips that make Girls Aloud‘s “Something Kinda Ooooh” video look groundbreaking.)

Singles aside, I wanted to share one of my favorite album tracks: “Maze,” which was produced by Fredro (who’s also responsible for album tracks “Can Anybody Tell Me?” and “Forget Your Name”) and co-penned by one of my current songwriter crushes, Claude Kelly.

Fredro, the song’s producer, is a Swedish-born writer who first began making waves in the early ’00′s producing for about a zillion of MuuMuse’s most approved acts including Shontelle‘s “Ghetto Lullabye” (!), The Sugababes‘ “Switch” (!!), and Holly Valance‘s “Hush Now” (!!!), as well as another former Australian Idol contestant–Season 1 winner, Guy Sebastian.

Claude Kelly is the same man responsible for co-penning Britney‘s “Circus” and “Shattered Glass” (I know, I KNOW…deep breaths!), Miley Cyrus‘ “Party In The U.S.A.” with Jessie J, and a handful of the better offerings from Christina Aguilera this year, including “Woohoo,” “Desnudate,” and arguably Burlesque‘s best number, “Express.” As one of his latest productions now soars up the Billboard charts (Bruno Mars‘ devastatingly good “Grenade”), I’m fully anticipating the talented songwriter to dominate in 2011.

So that is that, and now we have “Maze”: A fantastically slick, electronica-infused R&B scorcher.

The song is particularly fantastic because it somewhat recalls JoJo‘s legendary “Too Little, Too Late” in that the chorus is very anthem-like and triumphant/inspirational sounding, when in fact the actual message of the song is rife with inner turmoil and a certain degree of sadness.

Speaking to its ‘explosive’ quality, “Maze” basically contains approximately two and a half choruses. First, there’s the pre-chorus (“Yeah, ’cause…one minute you want my tou-ee-uch, yeah / Next minute you don’t want none”).

Upon first listen, it seems like this could be the song’s decent chorus–but it isn’t. IT JUST FEEDS INTO A BETTER ONE: “OOOOOH! Should I stay or should I GOOOO?”

But then, something EVEN MORE AMAZING happens toward the end of the actual chorus: “Your heart is like a MA-EE-AY-ZE!” J. Melly bellows and repeats, rendering the listener physically incapable of doing anything except throwing their head back and hollering right along with the Aussie R&B songstress.

In conclusion: “Maze” is a-MAZE-ing. Do you see what I just did there?! LOLOLOLOL.

Get ‘Em Girls was released on November 5. (Australian iTunes) (Been Waiting is available on US iTunes).

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.

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These two are Nikki + Rich, a newly signed soul pop act from Warner Brothers Records.

While I was intrigued from the beginning, it was this slick, stylishly crafted intro video that sealed the deal for me.

And now, a brief summation:

Nikki & Rich are Nikki Leonti, a California-born pastor’s daughter who grew up singing in church, and Rich Velonskis, a Queens, NY-born former DJ and established hip-hop/R&B producer who got his start spinning in New York City clubs as a teenager. These two seemingly opposite characters first met in 2007. Nikki was based in Nashville working as a background singer for Carrie Underwood and Rich was in Los Angeles producing tracks for Eve, Robin Thicke, Mario, and Ludacris, under his moniker Rich Skillz…Rich was looking for a strong vocalist and lyricist to collaborate with and take his tracks to the next level and he found the perfect match in Nikki.

To put it simply, Nikki + Rich are to doo wop as Bitter:Sweet are to acid nu-jazz: a dynamic duo of two (rather attractive) musicians with a flair for the old-fashioned.

Though there’s been some backlash as of late for ‘revival acts’ that call upon the sounds of yesterday (Adele, Duffy, Winehouse), Nikki + Rich show the promise of staying true to today without looking back to the point of becoming a tribute band.

You can now stream the swinging “Cat and Mouse” and the deliciously sassy “Next Best Thing” right now.

I’m utterly obsessed with these two!

This is a Nicki Minaj post, so brace yourselves accordingly.

Mizz Minaj’s latest song feature comes courtesy of the new Ludacris single, “My Chick Bad,” an increasingly catchy track that basically revolves around the idea that his chick is indeed badder than yours in every single way.

Hilarity soon ensues lyrics-wise (“She can get a little hasty / Chicks better cover up their chests like pasties / Couple girlfriends, and they’re all a little crazy / Coming down the street like a parade–Macy’s!”) until the baddest bitch is revealed. And just who would that be? Why, Nicki Minaj of course!

Equipped with a solid pink wig and a Freddy Krueger razor glove, Minaj goes all shades of crazy for her brief guest spot, namedropping Friday the 13th and A Nightmare on Elm Street and threatening to leave you hanging in a Hefty bag. My love for this girl is already near extreme capacity, and now she’s referencing slasher flicks in her verses? Be still, my horror-loving heart!

The Harajuku Barbie’s debut album cannot come soon enough.

Everyone loves an underdog. Everyone loves a superstar. But almost no one’s got love for an underdog superstar.

That’s about how I’d describe Ciara, the 23-year-old R&B sensation responsible for eight top ten singles and roughly ten million albums sold in just five years. Still, despite an impressive chart record and a lasting presence in the industry, the songstress continues to face the crippling blow of the shadow–that dreaded, overbearing presence brought upon by enough comparisons to her contemporaries to recall the bubble-gum blonde diva duels of the ’90′s (Willa Ford, you will be missed). And while her latest outing, Fantasy Ride, will likely provide no help in separating CiCi from RiRi (and I dare say, from Beysus), it’s worthy enough to merit attention in its own right.

On paper alone, the album already reads like a smash: From Missy Elliot to Darkchild, Dr. Luke to Danja, Ludacris to T-Pain, The Clutch and Chris Brown (gasp, boo, hiss, etc.), the girl’s simply got it written in the stars (well, by the stars, for that matter). But as you might have expected from such an expansive guest list, the music gets a bit messy sometimes. In fact, the only thing keeping this Ride from complete lift-off is the noisy overproduction on almost every track.

Still, much of the album’s got the grit to inspire more than just a little sweat: The Missy Misdemeanor-fueled “Work” and the super swagged “Pucker Up” are the purest definitions of club bangers, while “G Is For Girl (A-Z)” promises to be C’s best attempt at ‘tude yet: “N is for nothing, boy I do this in my sleep / O is for original, cause I’mma O.G.” She’s not nearly “gangsta” enough for me to buy the act, but with that crunchy clang-a-lang beat, I don’t really care if she’s as hood as Asher Roth.

As we’ve gathered from the excellence that was “The Promise” off her last album, C knows how to command a ballad. Well. With an Aaliyah-like disjointedness, she tip-toes along “Like A Surgeon,” floats all over the lush mid-tempo chill of “Keep Dancin’ On Me,” and swoons atop the fluttery “Lover’s Thing”–all while making sure to obey the restrictions of her vocal capacity.

The momentum doesn’t entirely hold: Though the general public may disagree, the insipidity of current smash “Love, Sex, & Magic” fails to inspire any joy on my end, while the sleepy “Never Ever” (which samples 1972 Harold Melvin & the Blue Notes hit “If You Don’t Know Me By Now”) quickly stalls after the chorus fades for the first time.

Fantasy Ride isn’t quite the stuff of fantasies, nor is smooth sailing throughout. But with a hot string of floor burners and some truly killer baby makin’ grinders, it’s probably one of the better trips I’ve taken this year.

PS: Make sure you’re getting the deluxe editions when you order–”Echo” and “I’m On” are highlights, and leaving them off of the original tracklisting was a criminal decision!

Ciara’s Fantasy Ride was released on Jive Records on May 5. Click below to preview and purchase NOW!

In celebration of the most horrendous weather conditions plaguing the Northeast right now, I present the MuuMuse Mini Wintry Mix, a spicy hot collection of mixes I’ve got banging about at the moment.

The Ludacris mash-up is a particular highlight.

Who knew the objectification of women with large, round asses could benefit so well from a smattering of body glitter and poppers?

DL: Britney Spears – Shattered Glass (E.J. Original Radio Mix) (Sharebee)
DL: Tiga – Louder Than A Bomb (Hoshina Anniversary Remix) (Sharebee)
DL: Ludacris vs. Hercules & Love Affair – Stand Up (Dave Wrangler Remix) (Sharebee)
DL: Metronomy – A Thing For Me (Blackout Remix) (Sharebee)
DL: Metronomy – A Thing For Me (Sinden Remix) (Sharebee)
DL: Peter Bjorn & John – Lay It Down (The Golden Filter Remix) (Sharebee)