Today's Pick

Latin pop's finest Jennifer Lopez takes the dance floor hostage once again and back looking sexy as ever with the fearless and flashy video for her party-themed track, "Live It Up," the lead single off Lopez's upcoming eighth studio album, featuring  guest vocals from Cuban rapper Pitbull. The duo performed the club banger earlier and blew us all away during the finale of "American Idol" last Thursday (May 16), which marks her first return to the show after residing on the judges panel for two seasons.
Lyrically, "Live It Up" features 43-year-old pop songstress singing inspirational lyrics about living it up over an uptempo dance-pop and Europop electro beat. The high-energy track utilizes a drum-patterned fist-pumping electro beat, as well as heavy synths. The typical Euro-pop jam contains the sonic disruptions of dubstep in the breakdown. Pitbull's lyrics have a recurring theme of feminism. It becomes something we never dreamed possible: a colorful and completely bonkers number!
Like graham crackers, marshmallows and chocolate, the combination of Lopez, Pitbull and producer RedOne has proven to be endlessly winning. After scoring hits with 2011's "On The Floor" and last year's "Dance Again," the trio has once again united for "Live It Up," which has been engineered as a dance-ready summer anthem, with RedOne's chopped-up synths hitting overdrive after Pitbull commands his audience, "Make love! Don't fight! Let's hook tonight!" While Lopez seems to be having a blast on the track, tossing out inspirational phrases about doing anything we want, living it up, not stopping, and going.
Directoed by Jessy Terrero, the sizzling and celebratory clip shows Lopez all sides of her ferocious vigor from runway fashionista to beach babe and having a jolly good time, as it begins with Lopez clothed in a black-feathered frock and chaotically getting ready for a big fashion show along with a group of dancer and models in contrast to the care-free environment of the beach. While Pitbull enjoys himself living it up on the beach with various women, she soon takes center spotlight on the catwalk where she shows off her dance moves. Later, these colorful and energetic scenes are inter cut with the singer lying on a beach chair with an orange swimsuit and vibrant orange lipstick on. Pump it up below.

Owl City on how being bullied as a teen informed his new music video for the latest song, "Metropolis," the third single from Owl City's latest mega hit fourth studio album, "The Midsummer Station," which has released last August, shows a shift towards a darker yet more Dance-oriented direction. The musical project – made up of singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Adam Young, who explained: "I grew up listening to Dance music and I've always wanted to make a Dance record, European dance music has so much influence over pop right now, so it made sense to me."
Young may not feel an explicit mission to make the '80s safe for the 21st century, but that's certainly what he achieves on Owl City's "The Midsummer Station." The set is bathed in sunshine melodies, uptempo hooks and buoyant choruses that recall MTV's early days. "Like a hijacked plane, or a runaway train, or a speeding bullet / there's no stopping this, I left my heart in Metropolis," the 26-year-old sings on the string-laden "Metropolis," which is a soaring number brimming with warm synths and a stomping beat that Young produced himself and co-wrote with his friend Matthew Thiessen of Relient K.
Young oozes frothy positivity through the effervescent sweep on the slightly more sophisticated "Metropolis." It's easy to see why Owl City exist. A sneering, compulsory hedonism pervades mass culture and high-school hallways. It warps more shy, creative kids into defensive partisans of lower-key whimsy. It gives us underdeveloped pop heroes like Young, who reduce their fans' fears and desires to the handiest cliché while desperately reassuring them they're all fuckin' perfect fireworks. But they deserve better. We deserve better. "I was bullied a lot in high school and didn't have a whole list of friends," the hit-making singer tells us of his superhero-themed clip. "So I wanted to make a video that paid heed to that." If you don't, the bad guys win.
Combining a mixture of live action and comic book drawings, the Daniel Cummings-directed video, has a great message about stopping bullying and becoming a hero, is cute and tells of a boy in high school who thwarts a bully to win the girl of his dreams. The comic-inspired music video begins with kids inside a classroom, and one school boy is reading a comic book. After class, the boy witnesses another kid being bullied in the hallway. The rest of the video switches among comic book scenes of the boy becoming a super hero and defeating evil, and of the boy in real life. Put on your cape and check out the video below!

Olly Murs sends love to his ex via graffiti, cappuccino foam and a handwritten letter in the emotional visuals for his heartbreaking pop song, "Dear Darlin'," third single lifted from English pop singer's latest third multi-platinum studio album, "Right Place, Right Time," which shot to the top of the charts last November. The video shows us a more vulnerable and sensitive side to the usual cheeky chappy we see singing and dancing around in his other popular tunes.
Rose to fame on The X Factor UK in 2009, placing runner-up, the 29-year-old "Troublemaker" singer contemplates a lost love while writing the heart-warming ballad "Dear Darlin'" with his friend and fellow singer-songwriter, Ed Drewett and Jim Eliot. "Writing with Ed and him being my friend helped, as we sat there for hours before writing, going over old relationships and recalling their scenarios," Murs said of the song. "It's about writing to someone to tell them how I feel about losing someone. It's not the kind of song you'd expect me and Ed to write, as we're bubbly characters, but we were able to open up to each other."
Murs sings along to an up-tempo ballad as he seems to be missing a previous relationship he once had. Love hurts! "Dear Darlin'" sees Murs making the transition from pop playboy to soulful balladeer. Murs lays his emotions bare in the dramatic video for his latest single, which Shot in Los Angeles and depicts Murs' heartbreak when he's dumped by his girlfriend, as we see heartbroken Murs sat alone in an apartment thinking about a recent break-up and reflecting on the arguments with his girlfriend in their new home while they struggle to communicate their feeling towards one another in writing, and sadly the relationship goes south.
The two try to do just that by communicating their feelings through a letter, but neither can find the right words. Later on in the promo Murs is attempting to win back the love of his life with a series of romantic gestures and puts pen to paper to write down the song's poignant lyrics. As he and the girl are seen walking the streets around the town with the girl been given a coffee saying 'I (Heart) You' in it, then walking by a busker playing the guitar with a cardboard sign 'saying I Miss You' next to him. She later seen walking by a wall with the words 'These Arms Are Yours To Hold' and she is last seen writing 'Dear Olly I Miss You Too' in a notebook before ripping the page out and scrunching it up whilst Murs is seen on top of a tower.

From Australia to India. Iggy Azalea goes global in the Bollywood-themed energetic video for her electro-pop party song, "Bounce," the second European single from the model-turned-rapper's upcoming debut album, "The New Classic", due later this summer. The Aussie rapstress adds her own little twist to some of the traditional dance rituals and partakes in a few local festivities and soaks up the culture in the colorful clip. Taking her talents down to India, Azalea adds her own little twist to some of the traditional dance rituals and partakes in a few local festivities.
Azalea's new banger "Bounce," bounces right into cultural appropriation territory. Instead of her simmering hip-hop tracks, Azalea gets a bit dance-y, with big breakdowns and super fast rapping, demonstrating she's aiming not just for rap fans, but for the late-night crowd, too. Azalea may very well have a smash on her hands with this, and she pairs the fiery raps for which she gained popularity with a club-friendly house beat that's the most commercial thing we've heard from her to date. If you didn't want to bounce before, you'll be dying to bounce right out of your seat after you see her new video!
The video shoot was a dream come true for the 22-year-old, who recently inked a deal with Island Def Jam. While being interviewed about the video shoot, Azalea called the experience one of the highlights of her career. "Shooting 'Bounce' in India was surreal, it's just so crazy to dream something so big and actually see it happen." She continued, "We just took this elephant and thugged it down the street, and it was insane." Azalea hopes the video will inspire others. "I think record labels need to reinvest in doing stuff like that," She continued. "It helps create the fantasy and the bigness of an artist. This video definitely perpetuates escapism."
Set in Mumbai, India, the BRTHR-directed Bollywood-esque piece video's vibrant visuals bring the already bright and colorful tune to life in ways only she can, complete with traditional Indian saris and elephants! Azalea reinterprets traditional dance routines and brought her fiercest Bollywood moves to show us all what she's working with as Azalea spitfire rides an IRL elephant and bounces her way down the busy streets of India through this party-perfect upbeat bouncy swagger. Not the one to shy away from provocative imagery, the clip shows Azalea cavorting amidst a festival of colors with interludes of psychedelic imagery throughout.

Sara Bareilles has finally premiered the music video for her inspiring hit single, "Brave," the lead offering from the super talented and humble American singer-songwriter's upcoming fourth studio album, "The Blessed Unrest," due in stores July 16 via Epic. The record was inspired by her own life and addressed some of the demons she was battling. "I have never felt more open and more raw in my entire life," said 33-year-old talented entertainer.
The bubbly jam, "Brave" lends advice to someone struggling to come out with an important confession. Though anyone could relate, Bareilles had a particular audience in mind. Writing the song with Fun. lead guitarist Jack Antonoff, Bareilles says she was inspired by a close friend who was having trouble coming out about being gay. "There is so much honor and integrity and beauty in being able to be who you are and it's important to be brave, because by doing that, you give others permission to do the same," she explained about her motivations. There's a really good energy about the song is extremely upbeat, rhythmic, fun, catchy and has a big singalong hook and an inspirational be-your-best-self message to it.
Set to a cheeky, piano-driven pop track, "Brave" marks the beginning of a new sound for Bareilles. As opposed to her previous subdued, organically slow ballads, "Brave" is Bareilles' most mainstream, pop radio-friendly effort to date. There's a lot more to this jam than Bareilles' crystal-clear delivery and some expertly polished production. The lyrics were partially inspired by a close friend of hers who struggled with coming out. So not only is Bareilles an ace musician, but she's also an amazing friend who writes personalized and empowering anthems for her pals to help them overcome life obstacles.
"I want to see you be brave!" sings Bareilles and sometimes, courage manifests itself in the form of shameless, altogether goofy dance moves. Bareilles has teamed up with actress Rashida Jones who marks the directorial debut for the video, which shows Bareilles belting out the uplifting lyrics of her new tune, while a group of random folks bust a move in Bareilles' words 'acting like a weirdo' at diverse locations in Los Angeles, such as, libraries, gyms and shopping malls. Soon enough, the other dancers join the polka-dot-clad Bareilles and flaunt some inspired choreography, simply not caring about what others may think and smiles are induced throughout.

After showing a more playful side with her Eminem-assisted single "C'mon Let Me Ride," Skylar Grey is one tough girl in her just-released dark and dramatic video for her appropriately titled catchy song, "Final Warning," the second single from the 27-year-old Wisconsin native's upcoming Eminem-executive produced major label debut album, "Don't Look Down," due in stores July 9 via Interscope Records. The haunting video puts a twist on the song's deadly-romance storyline as Grey plays a mistress in her lover's cross-hairs.
"This is the first time in my entire life of making music, when I made this song, where I feel like I finally figured out the way that I wanted to sound and the combination of things," Grey tells Rolling Stone about the song. "I wrote the song three years ago, and it's still my favorite. I've written so many songs since then, yet I always go back to this one. It got me going on the whole Skylar Grey project." Grey adds that the song was inspired by heartbreak. "I wrote it the same week I wrote 'Love the Way You Lie.' I was in a cabin in the woods in Oregon. It's inspired by the same tumultuous relationship behind 'Love the Way You Lie.'"
For "Final Warning," Grey gets back to her 'dark' sound. This is more like the Grey we first met. I honestly like this spooky ballad. And the video is amazing. It translates the message of the song really well. Love and family don't always mix. When relationships become inappropriate and lines get crossed, there's no telling what the outcome may be. The dark cinematic visual tells a complex storyline and shows a battered and bruised Grey returning from near death and appears at her family's home wanting to confess a dark secret about having an affair with her sister's boyfriend, but it only to be put through a near life ending ordeal as he tried to kill her. But it's Grey who will have the last laugh.
"The video for 'Final Warning' is totally different from the song," says Grey. "In the song you'd think I'm talking about my boyfriend cheating on me. But in the video I'm the mistress to this dude, who's married to another woman, and I'm mad that he married [her] instead of me." And to hide his infidelity, the "dude" then tries to murder Grey's character. "He wants to get rid of me so his whole life doesn't fall apart," she explains. "He botches the murder. Then I come back and confront him in front of his whole family at his birthday party. I come into the house, all muddy, because I came out of a ditch he threw me in after trying to murder me and not succeeding. I crash the party and everyone freaks out. Then he tries to finish me off for good."

MIKA has teamed up with post-Nickelodeon pop star Ariana Grande to release a music video for his latest anti-bullying anthem, "Popular Song," the second single in the US from the 29-year-old British singer-songwriter's third studio album, "The Origin of Love." The heart of the video is fantastic and shows the pair hosting a grisly dinner party to get revenge on a pack of schoolyard bullies that picked, teased and were otherwise horrible to them.
Funny enough, it seems like the 19-year-old lovely and talented Grande's own popularity is on the rise heading into this partnering. MIKA, meanwhile, is still doing what he does best - peppering infectious melodies with raw cleverness. The track contains a killer "Wicked" sample, featuring a fresh twist line from the Broadway musical's smash track "Popular," and uses a very rough tempo and instrumentation, to fit in with the theme of the album. MIKA said of the song in an interview: "I went to see ["Wicked"], and I thought, 'Grande's actually being mean,' so I thought it would be nice to take the song and write my own version of it because I don't like what she was saying in that part of the show."
"Popular Song" is a song to inspire bullied and unpopular people to stand up. It is a different view of MIKA's previous efforts, with its peppy beat + catchy melody + playful lyrics = perfect song to bounce around to. OK, we get it, high school sucks as anyone who went to high school knows. Wouldn't it be nice to invite them over for dinner, then magically turn them into stone like the witches? Well, no matter how much they suck, MIKA and Grande do a nice job of acting out our ultimate high school fantasy in the Chris Marrs Piliero-directed stylish video for "Popular Song."
The clip follows a Gothic theme, being set in a spooky, dark, "Addams Family"-esque high school. MIKA texts an invite to a dinner party to his popular classmates who are bullying him and Grande. This is interlaced with scenes of the two brewing a potion in a witch's cauldron and scenes of them falling victim to bullying. MIKA later prepares to return to his mansion in his talking car. At the dinner party, the bullies consume their drinks drugged with the potion, and turn to stone. They are then smashed into pieces. The video ends with a twist, as the pair have a toast and the former takes a sip from his drink, the video flashes back to when the two were children and MIKA is seen kicking down Grande's castle made of wooden blocks. MIKA subsequently turns to stone as well.