Today's Pick

Rising Soul/Pop talent Erin Christine premiered the official video for her first official buzz single "Say," during an exclusive celebration at NYC's The Eldridge. The emotionally captivating video was directed and edited by former MTV host Quddus with cinematography by Michael Dispenza, and Co-starring Silvestre Rasuk. The song was written by Tiffany Starr, composed on piano by Christine, and co-produced by Malay, the producer of John Legends's "Green Light" single.
Connecticut was the backdrop for this rising star's upbringing. Born to Italian and Lebanese parents, her diverse background is not the only trait that separates her from the rest. Christine is one of the newest artists out there to grasp the industry's attention. Tiffany Starr quickly recognized Christine's extraordinary talent at the young age of twenty-one and they started creating her sound using emotion filled lyrics and dramatic melodies on keys. The new song "Say" is a strong record with pop potential. The new R&B artist explained "I came up with this idea on keys and called [songwriter] Tiff [Starr] in the room and she just started spitting out words. It's about a relationship that didn't work out and later down the road she wants to SAY to him me still get's butterflies and she just wants the chance to SAY to him that there is no me without you."
Up-and-comer Christine has a hard time letting go in the video for her piano-kissed ballad "Say." The sensitive clip follows the chanteuse as she says goodbye to a boyfriend, eventually meeting back up with him down the road and discovering that he's moved on. Quddus took to the mic and expressed his inspiration from the song "Say," "I wanted the video to be just as raw as the song. Bring you right into a relationship and the moments that end up defining it." He directed singer and pianist Christine's debut video with an eye that captured emotion vividly. This video is about wanting the chance to SAY something before it's too late.
The talented vocalist have already caught the attention of John Legend and HOT 97 radio personality Peter Rosenberg. With all of the heat she currently has combined with a soulful, yet powerful voice and girl next door charm, it looks like the sky is the limit for this young up-and-coming, talented R&B singer. Whose upcoming debut EP "Something Better" is slated for a release in 2011. Once again, Christine stood out from the rest for her unique and soulful sound and was given numerous "once in a lifetime" opportunities.

Adele, the UK songstress who successfully crossed the pond with her 2008 critically acclaimed debut album "19" is gearing up for "21," her highly anticipated new sophomore release. After winning the Grammy for Best New Artist last year, it seemed she took a break from the music scene in the states. Her official video for her amazing lead single, "Rolling In The Deep" has premiered on iTunes yesterday and it is breathtaking in its simplicity. Adele sits alone in a stark room belting out the song amidst scenes of destruction.
It's been a while since we've heard from the two-time Grammy Award winner songstress whose hit song "Hometown Glory" has been everywhere. She's still got that powerful, soulful voice and you can hear that influence in the stomping "Rolling in the Deep," which was written quickly and in the heat of the moment. "I was so angry that I finished 'Rolling in the Deep' in about an hour," the 22-year-old , tells PEOPLE of the witty revenge tune. Sometimes anger can produce something beautiful. On this revenge song, Adele lays into a former boyfriend. "It's me making a bit of a statement," she told Q Magazine.
The soulful Adele describes the revenge tune as a "dark bluesy gospel disco tune." it's a sweet mix of soul, blues and folk with a bit of an indie rock feel on top. Adele's vocals are as powerful as they ever were. "We were kind of expecting to come up with another 'Chasing Pavements,'" says Adele of another track on the album, "but we ended up with this beautiful gospel piano tune, and it's lovely." Yes, Adele is done chasing pavements on "Rolling in the Deep," which is sung from the perspective of a scorned lover, who is finally able to see the light, but despite regretful sentiments, reconciliation is not an option here.
Like "19," the "21" title refers to Adele's age at the time the songs were written. The British singer explained on her website that the album "knocked me for six when writing it." As for the themes of her new album, Adele explains, "I've grown up. I can deal with rejection better and I'm not as serious in my normal life as I was in my music." The video directed by Sam Brown featuring "strong images of a female warrior performing a contemporary dance." If any other artist said they could film an entire music video sitting in a chair and singing, while the world fell apart around them, I would laugh and say, "nice try Susan Boyle." But when Adele does it, the result is a magical and emotional mini-movie that tells a story just as heart wrenching as the song itself. Enjoy!

Born to a Danish mother and Tibetan father, Kesang Marstrand is not your ordinary mixed-origin singer-songwriter. She just out with a music video for her debut album's title track, "Bodega Rose." Grew up in Colorado and she later moved to New York, her interest in music began at an early age, as she discovered her passion for music via a piano in the common room of a schoolhouse in Colorado. Marstrand's music is soulful acoustic that's at once gripping and memorable. Her debut album is a contemplative, acoustic work. Smallish album of great folk songs with catchy melodies.
In New York City, which is where Marstrand live mostly, "Bodega" is just a word for a convenience store. The title song is about the roses you can buy outside most bodegas. The sentiment of the song has to do with the choices we make, and the inevitable sacrifice of choosing something like living in the city as opposed to living in a more natural environment. It's about reconciling a choice and recognizing that there's a sacrifice in everything, but that there's also a beauty in that. I think the entire album is about reconciliation, in different ways.
Marstrand has a relaxed and delicious voice. She tells us about writing "Bodega Rose:" "It started with the image of this bodega on a street corner near where I was living in New York. They have flowers outside, like a lot of bodegas do, and I remember having this image in my mind of the roses on a rainy evening. Then the idea of wilderness came up, the idea of wildflowers, and I found myself thinking about how many people in the city, including myself, often feel this intense longing for nature. The song came from that place, and writing it came very naturally... it just kind of came to me, which doesn't happen that often."
The video was shot in Nashville in August after Marstrand moved from NYC, and directed by filmmaker Jeff Wyatt Wilson, who had to say about working with Marstrand: "When I first heard Kesang's 'Bodega Rose' I simply fell in love with her lyrics as well as her voice. I immediately played the song over and over again and was so excited that this was the artist and song we were going to shoot." He added "Kesang and I worked wonderfully together. She has a beautiful soul and is one of the most kind and talented musicians I've ever worked with. Projects like this are humbling and remind me of just how fortunate I am to get the pleasure to have these brief intimate creative moments where friendships are born that you know will last forever."

Country music Sibling trio The Harters is back with a breezy song of love worth chasing. They released a music video for their latest single, "If I Run," the official lead single from their self-titled debut album which is expected to release in early 2011. This is a very ear-pleasing country music by The Harters. A hyperbolic emotion all encapsulated very well in a simple yet poignant delivery. It could just be a breakthrough for the band.
Family. Love. Harmony. They're three simple words that can mean anything to pretty much everybody. But for The Harters, they embody a way of life that means just about everything. The trio is comprised of two brothers, Michael and Scott and one sister, Leslie, which may be why their harmonies are so meshed with one another. The the family trio started singing together in 2005 after several years of pursuing careers independently. The musically gifted siblings moved from their home in Arizona to Tennessee and quickly connected with producer Keith Stegall to record their unique brand of country chorals and seamless natural harmonies.
Their soaring vocals and family harmonies lend a sound to this song and all of their music that is just incredible. "If I Run" is a slower and softer love ballad with an upbeat rhythm that tells the story of a woman whose heart was once broken, looking to love again but needing to know if her partner will "run" after each other, and accompany her through life's peaks and valleys as she contemplates a long-term future. A strong ballad of patience, understanding, sympathy and everlasting love that grows old together. The family trio sound fantastic with their strong vocals & harmonies making this song one that will hook you right from the beginning.
The siblings produce a distinctive country sound. The songs are not dusty bar tunes carried in a rusty bucket nor are they pop creations disguised in denim and big hats. The harmonies are true and easy and the music is melodious and catchy, and the song is soft but strong in content, harmony and tempo. With the new single "If I Run," The Harters are easy to get-to-know. Just like the song itself asks "If I run would you run after me?" The Harters's music is worth the chase.

Country quartet Little Big Town is back in a big way onto the airwaves earlier this year with "Little White Church," a rollicking, sassy, bluegrassy lead-off single from their fourth studio album, "The Reason Why," which hit stores in August, and has brought the band to the top of the country albums charts for the first time. Right in their wheelhouse, the vibrant song re-established the group as a vocal force of nature, once again earning their place on radio playlists.
They say timing is everything, and momentum has now shifted some with the release of their second song "Kiss Goodbye" to radio on October, and have just released their new video on CMT for the introspective ballad song. Producer Wayne Kirkpatrick, sets the initial haunting tone with an icy and isolated triad of piano chords, but band member Phillip Sweet takes it from there, delivering verses with quiet warmth, slowly winding up for the earth-rattling, four-part harmonies that hit hard in the chorus. Sweet's lead vocal is slightly grainy and soulful, contrasting with the layered, slick and surprisingly more pop-oriented production. The lyrics, atypically for a Hillary Lindsey co-write, are simple without being overly familiar.
The video was shot in Adams, Tennessee, where the group worked with director David McClister for the first time. Band mate Jimi Westbrook offers insight into the video's content: "It's about maybe a summer love that is blossoming and happening and for some reason has to end." Over even-keeled light piano melodies and blues-driven acoustic guitar, two-part harmonies and mid-tempo percussion kick off the second verse, followed by the group's stylistic four-part harmonies in the hook as they sing about moving on from a relationship. The simple lyric with a focused message about letting go with love might not be the visually video-ready kind that prevails in country music, but is head-nodding real and relatable all the same.
"The Reason Why" is an interesting single choice, since it's markedly more pop than many of their previous songs. But it's still unmistakably a Little Big Town song, and it's a cut that shows the dynamics of the group's highly-refined sound. It may take a while to get this one going at radio since it's such a slow, downbeat song, but from both an artistic and commercial standpoint, "Kiss Goodbye" is a risk worth taking. A beautifully bittersweet song, carried out in Little Big Town's trademark perfect harmony, makes you believe and keeps you coming back for more. It represents new straight-up pop territory for the foursome, which it does.

With their popularity on a tremendous rise stemming from this year's hit love song "Hey Soul Sister" and "If It's Love," The San Francisco based rock band Train has decided to make their mark on the holiday season as well. They wrote another new song for holidays entitled "Shake Up Christmas" which will spread joy and love during hard times. The cool dudes from Train have launched the brand new Video for their new Christmas tune on people.com, and hope to put a smile on the faces of music fans when listening to it amidst the gloomy economy. The Butch Walker-produced track will be released as a single worldwide on December 20.
"Shake Up Christmas," is a jaunty singalong that will appear as a bonus track on the Grammy-winning band's recently released "Save Me, San Francisco: Golden Gate Edition" (a deluxe reissue of their 2009 critically-acclaimed fifth album "Save Me, San Francisco") and if "Shake it up, shake up the happiness" sounds a bit too commercial then you might be on to something, since the song is set to be the soundtrack of the new Coca-Cola commercial campaign this Christmas. Every year, there is always a bid to get a modern tune into the permanent Christmas canon, which is always a bit of an uphill battle. Train's Christmas single "Shake Up Christmas" is probably my favorite of all the 2010 newcomers. It's just happy and catchy!
"The holiday season is one of the best times of the year," said Pat Monahan, the lead vocalist and founding member of Train. He told Reuters the new song is less about commerce and more about wanting to conjure holiday joy during tough times having come across so many people struggling during the economic downturn. "The song 'Shake Up Christmas' is inspired by childhood memories of spending time with family and sharing the happiness and hope that the season brings. Having it be part of the Coca-Cola campaign is a wonderful way to share that sentiment with a bigger audience." He also added that writing a song only for commerce reasons seemed cynical. Approaching a song that way, he said, "you are not going to write inspiring music. I think of what I did with 'Shake Up Christmas' as a 'how can I help' spread some happiness."
Over the course of 15 years, the multi-platinum selling band has traveled a long, successful and sometimes arduous journey. Train has, for all intents and purposes, experienced an epiphany as a whole. Now, with their latest album, "Save Me San Francisco," Train has channeled their early days, revisiting the roots rock sound. "It's really an honor to know that, somehow, our music is affecting people in a positive way," Monahan said. "Shake Up Christmas" provides a fitting backdrop with lyrics that echo the same emotion and Train embraces Santa's spirit for a festive new holiday song that is sure to lift your spirits.

American pop singer Ke$ha throws sexy, dark dance party so hard in just-released clip for "We R Who We R," her first offering and a solid kick off to her new debut EP, "Cannibal," which is upbeat, yet typical and an electronic dance pop party extravaganza, released last month. The track debuted at the top of the Billboard Hot 100, three weeks before the EP's release.
Ke$ha was inspired to write the song in the wake of news that bullying had led to multiple suicides of gay youth. Ke$ha explained that she wanted the song to become a pride anthem: "I wanted to inspire people to be themselves. It's a celebration of any sort of quirks or eccentricities." She elaborated, "I was really affected by the suicides that have been happening, having been subject to very public hatred myself. I have absolutely no idea how these kids felt. What I'm going through is nothing compared to what they had to go through. Just know things do get better and you need to celebrate who you are. Every weird thing about you is beautiful and makes life interesting. Hopefully the song really captures that emotion of celebrating who you are." With its bouncy Dr. Luke beats and her usual bubblegum melodies, it could actually be her poppermost effort to date.
The chart-topping "We R Who We R" is dominantly a uptempo dance-pop song with a trashy edge providing great Friday night party music, that utilizes a synth-heavy backing. Vocally, the song follows in the footsteps of Ke$ha's previous singles, in which Ke$ha uses her "signature" talk-singing vocal style throughout the song. The 23-year-old pop phenom continues to toe the line between offensive and clever, she struck gold again with "We R Who We R." The catchy beat and a party sense applies to most of the general public with "You know we're superstars, we are who we are!" and it will make anyone dance. This really can mean whatever you want it to be.
Glitter, studded eyebrows, and 'sexified' autotune are all present in Ke$ha's new video since she wants everyone to know "We R Who We R." The Good-time girl says that "This video is a little bit sexy time." Directed by Hype Williams in downtown Los Angeles this fall, The hot and dangerous video is presented as an underground party, and centers on Ke$ha having a night out with her crew roll through a tunnel as a fire burns in the background and then she stage dives off a roof. Luckily, the crowd below catches her. The video closes with a smiling Ke$ha dancing her heart out, proclaiming proudly that "We R Who We R." Ke$ha definitely knows how to entertain us and put on a show! She's clearly a performer! When they arrive, Revolucion tequila is on full display at a post-apocalyptic rave. Apparently, Ke$ha has now hit the product-placement stage of her career.