Mariah Carey is taking her sweet, sweet time with this comeback.
As promised in her tousled hair teaser last month, the iconic chanteuse premiered her duet with Miguel “#Beautiful” today (the hashtag in the title is real, very real), the lead single from her follow-up to 2009′s Memoirs Of An Imperfect Angel.
Like last summer’s mostly terrible “Triumphant (Get ‘Em)” with Meek Mill and Rick Ross, the vocal powerhouse arrives late to her own party, casually strolling into the production around the 1:30 mark.
Unlike her rapper-heavy, whisper-filled 2012 disaster, Mariah’s actually singing on this one—and there’s a solid melody the whole way through. Glory be, Lambily!
There are myriad pop stars who have floated along the blogosphere in the past five years, inciting a brief panic of overexcitement and hyperbolic praise (I’ve certainly been a culprit once or twice), only to spiral downward—a result of unmet expectations and subpar follow-ups—and eventually fade into obscurity.
Betty Who, however, is the real deal.
“Who?” you’ll ask, thinking you’re quite funny.
Take the emotional dance floor wallop of Robyn at her finest, the massive, yelping hooks and underlying nostalgia of Katy Perry at her teenage dreamiest, the ’80′s synth-pop sheen of Empire Of The Sun at their New Wave-iest, a bit of the euphoria of Madonna at her earliest, and stick that all in an industrial-sized blender: You’ve got one hell of a pop star concoction, right?
That’s Betty Who.
Earlier this month, the Sydney-raised, Boston-schooled indie-pop songstress released her debut (free!) EP The Movement, an unbelievably rock solid slice of ’80′s electro-encrusted pop perfection spread across 4 tracks, which PopJustice declared to be “2013′s the best proper EP so far.” It’s true. Let’s dig in, yes?
Remember Orion? He’s the Swedish producer responsible for crafting last summer’s stunning “In The End,” which left us all crying at the discotheque.
Over the past year, he’s been steadily prepping his full-length debut. But in between crafting new cuts, he’s been putting his signature emotional spin on some of the finer Swede-pop songs of the past decade, including Faye‘s “Water Against The Rocks” and Agnes’ “One Last Time.”
He’s got a new mix to add to his dreamy collection this week, this time putting a spin on Christian Falk‘s 2006 single “Dream On,” featuring Robyn and The Ark‘s Ola Salo.
Orion’s take on the track adds some celestial stringwork and intergalactic polish to the production, allowing Robyn to sound right at home dancing on her own up in space. Dream on, indeed. (Speaking of, can she come down to Earth to unleash some more Swede-pop perfection this year, please?)
Check out the MuuMuse premiere of Orion’s glittering remix below.
Earlier today, I got on the hotline and spoke with the Thrower of Body Parties, Giver of Fantasy Rides and all-around Crunk-R&B Queen herself, Ciara. You know, as one does.
Why? Well, I wanted to talk about her upcoming record Ciara, obviously—but mostly because I had to get to the bottom of this whole “He Reads” business from the “Body Party” video. I also wanted to know why she’s apparently featured on her own song (“Super Turnt Up”). Oh, and to demand that “Overdose” be released as a single.
I managed to accomplish all three. Let’s get it started.
The Presets and Dragonette are packing up their synthesizers, strapping on their dancing shoes and heading out on tour together next month. And on May 8, they’re making a stop at Terminal 5 in New York City.
Do you live in this city? Do you want to attend the bound-to-be fantastic synth-pop affair, turn into a youth in trouble and dance until your legs go numb? Duh, of course you do.
And so…
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