Today's Pick

Lupe Fiasco sparks a conversation and discussion with the powerful video for “Bitch Bad,” the second single from the 30-year-old Chicago rapper's upcoming fourth album, "Food & Liquor II: The Great American Rap Album Part 1," which addresses the overuse of the word "bitch" in hip-hop culture, is slated to drop digitally and physically on September 25th.
Fiasco may be best known for delivering fans his unforgettable debut album "Food & Liquor," but no matter what, the LP the Chicago lyricist always manages to give us food for thought. In "Bitch Bad," the outspoken MC lyrically contemplates the long-term psychological effects of the word "bitch," by weaving together a narrative of both a young boy and girl who are separately exposed to the degrading language. He once again uses provocative imagery to get his message across in the visuals for the gallery’s dissection. Perhaps the new clip will purvey the track's intent better than the mp3 did.
The visual according to Fiasco aims to elevate the Hip Hop dialogue around women beyond the all too common 'booty' and 'bitches,' and also takes on the stereotypical imagery of the Hip Hop thug placing these stereotypes in blackface portraying them as modern day minstrels. It was shot in a retro style, and filmed on a stage in a theater, to emphasize the idea that we're being told a story with a lesson to be learned. Fiasco makes sure to be as respectful as possible, though perhaps a bit on the nose, the video certainly adds weight to Fiasco's in depth breakdown of the word.
Young boys and girls watch the Chicago MC narrate a play in three acts that hopes to deconstruct the word “bitch” in hip-hop songs and show its negative affects it has in shaping the mindsets of children in the African-American community. Act One narrates how young men learn and interpret the term, Act Two narrates the same for young women, and Act Three demonstrates the communication clash amongst the two groups. As Fiasco discussed with MTV Rap-Fix, he hopes that by starting the conversation, kids will continue the discussion themselves and hopefully make a change of how they view (and call) themselves and others.

The pop diva and prospective American Idol judge Mariah Carey may be emancipated, but she makes 'triumphant' return in front of the lens shooting a new video for her current rap-heavy anthemic track, "Triumphant (Get 'Em)," which features rappers Rick Ross and Meek Mill. Carey's honeyed voice is perfectly matched by Ross's lower rumble and Mill's bold, energetic delivery. Ultimately, it's a classic Carey track, lacing potent R&B beats and vocal patterns with an urban street edge.
Served as the lead-off single from Carey's hotly anticipated fourteenth, yet to be titled comeback campaign (the first since 2009's "Memoirs of an Imperfect Angel"), "Triumphant (Get 'Em)," is a midtempo R&B and hip hop inspirational song. Lyrically, the song is uplifting and positive. The 42-year-old revealed that she penned this song when she was going through a difficult time and it helped her get through it. She later stated that she wrote it when her husband Nick Cannon was in the hospital with acute kidney failure.
In a landscape that is dominated by uptempo, synthy tracks loaded with overly processed vocals, it left us wondering exactly where Carey's vocal acrobatics could or would fit in in 2012. Carey uses her best asset that gorgeous voice to her benefit, but thankfully, she's not overdoing it and shattering glass with her mega octaves. There is a time and place for that, but it’s not in the space of this particular song. Instead, Carey exercises taut control and that’s why the song is pretty incredible. When Carey does turn it up, she's on-point, a self-help guru with a five-ctave range.
Having a 1960s vibe with the word “TRIUMPHANT” boldly splayed across the back of his golden robe, Mill stars in Carey's husband Nick Cannon-directed clip as a boxer heading into the ring and hoping to demolish and triumph against his competition, a fitting metaphor for the song, while Ross watches from the front row with ever-glamorous Carey, who basically plays a cheerleader and does not disappoint in the pictures, looking like a Hollywood starlet in diamonds and a curve-hugging gleaming golden glory dress.

British singer Amelia Lily earned her chart assault the hard way after one of the most dramatic comebacks in X Factor history, and went on to finish third behind Little Mix and Marcus Collins last year — a huge achievement considering she was set to return to her job in a garden center near Middlesbrough. Now she's back with her debut video for her first solo single, "You Bring Me Joy," as the lead single from Lily's upcoming debut studio album.
Many X Factor (UK) winners have faded into oblivion, but several runner-ups have been the show's most successful exports. Lily is the one who keeps surprising us. "I dream of being as big as Katy Perry and doing a film of my career," says the Kelly Rowland-mentored 17-year-old X Factor star. Produced by Xenomania, this sophisticated, sort-of banger "You Bring Me Joy" sees Lily's impressive voice take center stage.
The danceable electronic pop record is straightforward, honest and obviously brilliant the first time you hear it and increasingly brilliant over the subsequent twenty or thirty listens. There's no enormous synth riff, no dubstep breakdown, and no "oh-oh-oh" lyrical bit. What remains is a very elegant take on the modern pop song. It's quite dignified, in a funny sort of way. It just feels very fluid and natural, and it works brilliantly with Lily's vocals. And that's what Lily's single is, and it's got the airpunch-friendly chorus to prove it.
As for the video, it seem to glow with an effortless summer sheen with a plot that conveys an idyllic teen summer outing, sees the blonde starlet enjoying herself with friends going on a road-trip through Los Angles, while peppered with flashbacks of times where she with her former lover and looks a bit more sad. All these scenes are intercut with Lily performing the lyrics, either on the hood of the vintage gold Mercedes or in front of a beach. It finishing up at a beach party in the evening while Lily sings the closing lines of the song.

Fresh off their spinning chairs, the Irish alternative rock band The Script have just released an inspiring music video for their new Will.i.am-assisted cut, "Hall of Fame," that serves as the lead single from their upcoming third studio album "#3," due out on September 10th in the UK. The single falls slightly flat on this point, resulting in a soft rock number that could easily have been an offering from The Script alone. However it's nice to see the Voice judges working together instead of against each other.
The Script provide a twist to their familiar sound on this single, collaborating with Will.I.Am' who adds a unique element to the song, which features elements of rap-rock and is uplifting and catchy. The inspiring track is about following your heart, your dreams, reaching one's goals and striving to reach the top, with breathtaking and faint inducing specimen of a music from "#3" album. The guitarist Mark Sheehan commented about the uplifting piano-led track: "We wanted to capture as much emotion in the track’s sound as there is in the lyrics, which are definitely some of the most positive and upbeat we’ve ever written."
Frontman Danny O'Donoghue decided to hook up with The Black Eye Pea rapper after the pair worked together as coaches on 'The Voice' UK. O'Donoghue explained to The Sun: "I played Will a few demos backstage early on in 'The Voice.' We got to 'Hall Of Fame' and he immediately asked if he could have it for his new album, as it was exactly what he was looking for. It starts out like a typical The Script track, with O'Donoghue's vocals over a piano, but then both the beat and Will.i.am kick in and it's clear the band have done their best to incorporate the Black Eyed Peas star's R&B roots.
The Script teamed up with Will.i.am shot the music video for "Hall Of Fame" in Los Angeles earlier this summer. The video features two different characters, each with their own goal. One is a boxer, the other is a ballerina. A great video for a great track. The inspirational video goes well with the theme of the song which is all about self empowerment and belief. The Script will make a triumphant return to the road in North America, kicking off their headlining tour on October 9 at New York's prestigious Radio City Music Hall.

Boys Like Girls have released the video for the track "Be Your Everything," the first song taken off pop rock band's upcoming comeback third full-length studio album, "Crazy World," which reportedly is split between rock and dance, were clear in the MTV interview that they weren't making "a disco record," is expected to release this fall.
After returning from their brief hiatus, Boys Like Girls are back with a brand new sound that is exemplified perfectly in "Be Your Everything." They've got that same angsty charm as before, but now it's wrapped in pop melodies instead of punk ones. The quarter pop-rockers re-emerged at this year's Bamboozle performing several new songs from their upcoming record. It should come as no surprise that we have a little thing for Boys Like Girls and their makeout-able ballad, "Be Your Everything," which is set in a futuristic, post-apocalyptic world where "the world has littered itself to death."
The working title for “Be Your Everything” might as well have been “Two Is Better Than One.” It's another ballad, along the same lines as Taylor Swift's; the vocals keen up into falsetto and down into strength, and the guitars lilt the same way. The lyrics are what you'd expect–being on a mission to be shelter from the storm and your everything, you know how it goes. It is a perfectly competent, perfectly safe ballad, it's going to soundtrack a lot of relationships, and it is not risky at all.
The video isn't exactly what you'd think a video for a sweet, sentimental love song should be. It features the boys performing their new jam amidst the cinematic expanses of an apocalyptic desert, as frontman Martin Johnson searches for, and finally reunites with, his love interest. "I'm searching for life on the planet and there's one girl left and she's found the last flower on earth," Johnson told MTV News. "I don't know if it's love or procreation, or what it is but humanity will survive. We'll get through it." As they roam the town trying to find each other, puppy-dog-eyed glances are stolen until eventually the two connect and realize they were meant to be.

After ceding party-rock crown to LMFAO, 3OH!3 are back with a brand-new visuals for the electro pop duo's comeback single, "You're Gonna Love This," the first official single slated to appear on the hard-partying boys' forthcoming fourth studio album, "Omens," and designs for a return to the throne.
The Colorado duo have been working on their "Omens" album, and their last offering was 2010's mostly ignored "Streets Of Gold," and in the two years since, they've had LMFAO, Cobra Starship and Ke$ha steal the spotlight in the irony-loving-booze-guzzling-party-rocking niche of dance-pop. So where does that leave them? In the case of "You're Gonna Love This," it leaves them desperately attempting to play catch up.
The clip follows a slightly tipsy Sean Foreman and Nathaniel Motte as they make poor decisions and try to engage in an increasingly complex game of one-upmanship, one that involves little more than sinking impossible shots in and impress the same girl by engaging in various ridiculous games, including throwing a coin into a glass, hitting a golf ball into a trash can, and throwing a basketball into a swimming pool from a rooftop. However, it's a Tom Cruise impersonator who eventually wins the girl's heart in this clip which is set at Las Vegas' Planet Hollywood Casino.
The plot of the Isaac Ravishankara-directed clip, as it were, is simple and the sonics of the song itself, which, with its electro whomp, starry synths and robo-voco chorus, seems destined to dominate the clubs. They've spent a year in the wilderness, and now they're mustering forces and beginning their siege on the city, and it's the opening salvo in the war for our hard-partying future, a battle that 3OH!3 are determined not to lose. Will they succeed in reclaiming the crown from LMFAO? We'll just have to wait and see, and like any good game of thrones, when it comes to party rocking, you win or you die.

Brandy is well on her way back onto the music scene with her newly released sleek and futuristic clip for the catchy enough jam, "Put It Down," featuring fellow R&B singer Chris Brown, serve as the lead single off of her upcoming sixth studio album, "Two Eleven," set to be released October 16, and it is the first comeback album since 2008's "Human."
It is an up-tempo R&B song featuring tinny percussion and canned claps. Lyrically, it features Brandy complementing a prospective beau on his swag. Later, Brown adopts a Nicki Minaj-like vocal delivery and jumps on with a Hip-Hop-inspired verse. Brandy swaggers like we haven't heard her swagger before, matching the beats boldness with smooth yet forceful lines. She has always had a firework for a voice, and earned a killer single to put it to use. The single is straight out of the US R&B factory.
"It's called 'Put It Down,' but I like to call it 'Fall in Love,'" the 33-year-old told The Boombox. "But no one else likes that title. It's so new and so fresh. It's just a different vibe. It's R&B meets Hip-Hop and it's edgy and gritty, but it's about love, which is something we all want to experience and stay in love. I want to stay in love." The song is simple in its message, in the sense it is a bit of a love song, and Brandy does well, so we hope this comeback to relevancy works out for her.
Brandy takes it back to the old school, bringing modern art to the streets and rocking her signature braids from her "Sittin Up in My Room" days in this Hype Williams-directed vibrant video. The "Long Distance" songstress and Brown are seen flirting with each other while singing their respective vocal flavor on the hood of a white Ferrari, show off their moves together, get a little closer than expected and embrace their colorful surroundings switch from a dark night to a paint-splattered colorful wall.