Taio Cruz

Live-Blogging The 2011 American Music Awards: We Could Have Had It All (But Then Adele Had To Go Have A Vocal Cord Hemorrhage)

Welcome to Sound of the City's liveblog of the 2011 American Music Awards, the annual salute to the most popular popular music that exists in the American wild this year. While Lady Gaga and Adele and Beyoncé are absent, this year's show apparently has one performance that will cost $500,000 to pul ... More >>

American Idol Goes Really, Really Country

Michael Becker/FOX​Oh boy, here we go. I can't possibly overemphasize how not excited I was to watch this Idol finale: Two perfectly decent singers who stick entirely within their genre--the exact same genre, even--and who both ran out of interesting tricks and wrinkles weeks ago. TMZ had a st ... More >>

Will An Army Of Beyoncés Save "Run The World (Girls)" From Chart Oblivion?

​Last night's Billboard Music Awards handed out popularity-contest trophies to the likes of Eminem, Justin Bieber, and Katy Perry, all of whom were rewarded for the copious amounts of radio play and sales they racked up in recent months. But the evening's real winner was probably Beyoncé, who ... More >>

Radio Hits One: The Disappearing Urban Crossover Hit Says "Look At Me Now"

​Chris Brown's "Look At Me Now" has topped Billboard's R&B/Hip-hop Songs chart for seven weeks in a row, and it recently peaked at No. 6 on the Hot 100. In terms of Brown's career, it's notable for being the singer's first top 10 hit in the two years since that whole violent incident with then ... More >>

American Idol Elton John Week: Who Knew? Probably A Lot of People! But Not Thia Megia and Her Horrific Zombie Smile!

Michael Becker / FOXJames Durbin makes the piano catch fire for no reason This week is Elton John week on American Idol, and it's the same week Elton John is hosting and playing musical guest on Saturday Night Live. Why so much Elton John all of a goddamned sudden? Did God hear "Rocket Man" on his ... More >>

The Jay-Z Fast Food Jukebox at Brooklyn's Buffalo Boss

While waiting for my fiery chicken wings at Buffalo Boss (read the review here ), the new wing joint at least partly owned by Jay-Z, I got to wondering, What should the music be at a place owned by Brooklyn's most respected hip-hop artist and businessman? Rap, of course, but what kind of rap? The ... More >>

Pazz & Jop Voter Comments: Rick Ross Lies, the Rolling Stones Plunder, and Taylor Swift Triumphs

The White Panda

Was 2010 The Best Year For Music Ever? Throw Taylor Swift In A Well

Welcome to Sound of the City's year-in-review rock-critic roundtable, an amiable ongoing conversation between five prominent Voice critics: Rob Harvilla, Zach Baron, Sean Fennessey, Maura Johnston, and Rich Juzwiak. We'll be here all week! Pay Rich Juzwiak what you owe him, Jay Leno. Twitpic by Dav ... More >>

Was 2010 The Best Year For Music Ever? House Music vs. Hashtag Rap

Welcome to Sound of the City's year-in-review rock-critic roundtable, an amiable ongoing conversation between five prominent Voice critics: Rob Harvilla, Zach Baron, Sean Fennessey, Maura Johnston, and Rich Juzwiak. We'll be here all week! The most important artist of 2010.​Hi everybody! To ... More >>

Live: Justin Bieber Provokes Squeals, Enrique Iglesias Asks a 16-Year-Old On A Date, And Katy Perry Rules All at Z100's Jingle Ball

Z100's Jingle Ball, featuring Katy Perry, Justin Bieber, Paramore, Kim Kardashian, and More Madison Square Garden Friday, December 10 Better than: That GIF of sparks coming out of Katy Perry's chest from the "Firework" video. Yes, Katy Perry looked like a human nutcracker at this year's Z100 Jin ... More >>

Free Will Astrology

The 10 Biggest Music Stories of 2010

Ah M.I.A., it just wasn't your year, was it? Photo by Rebecca Smeyne.​In 2010, Vampire Weekend and Arcade Fire both had #1 records. LCD Soundsystem, Spoon, MGMT, the National, M.I.A, and Sufjan Stevens all had albums debut in the top ten. Kanye West joined Twitter. Drake started a riot in New ... More >>

'Z100's Jingle Ball 2010'

Will "The Ultimate Chart" Change The Way We Quantify The Ubiquity Of Eminem, Katy Perry, Lady Gaga, And Justin Bieber?

​A common complaint about music charts in the post-sales age is that, with their reliance on SoundScan data and airplay numbers, they miss other avenues for popular consumption, from YouTube streams to--shh!--free downloads. BigChampagne, which started off as a service charting the popularity ... More >>

"Why Don't We Ask The Girls What They Think?": New York Magazine Spends Some Quality Time With Dr. Luke

Please enjoy the excellent Adam Sternbergh's in-depth analysis of Dr. Luke -- NYC native (though "'The New York I grew up in is gone,' he says bluntly"), Saturday Night Live alum, and, yes, alchemist behind any current radio-dominating pop smash you'd care to name. In addition to quoting two fine ... More >>