Beautiful People, a positive message song projected to you by way of announcement making synths. In times of economic uncertainty and recession, it gave everyone a much needed lift.
In a very left field manner from Chris Brown’s usual formula-which has gained him top ten hits in the US with ‘Gimme That’ & ‘Poppin’, the Benny Benassi production combined uptempo electro house & R&B to create a luscious sounding dance floor smash.
‘Beautiful People’ is a stand-out track amongst average pop music which has recently adopted the uptempo electro house signature. In the Billboard dance charts, it reached No 1 and went on to be a top ten hit around the world including Australia & New Zealand.
Chris Brown was nominated for best male artist & best album in the Soul/R&B category at the American Music Awards 2011 after successfully releasing his fourth album titled F.A.M.E (Fans Are My Everything). Other accolades include winning album of the Year at the 2011 Soul Train Music Awards. ‘Look At Me Now’ the second single from the album has also earned Chris Brown three nominations for the 2011 Grammy’s.
Chris Brown isprobably one of the most charted singers in the world right now. His singles ‘Deuces’, ‘Yeah 3X’ and ‘Look At Me Now’ have all enjoyed success on the Billboard chart, while his collaborations with Big Sean, Keri Hilson, Chipmunk and Bow Wow have all dominated radio and clubs. His latest album went straight to number one in the States on its release while a hook up with auto-tune king T-Pain could see him gain his 7th hit single of 2011.
However, despite a heavy workload and huge commercial success, controversies in Brown’s personal life still dominate headlines. Chris claims it’s exactly this focus on the music that’s got him through his recent media storm: as such, he’s dedicating his new album to all the fans that have supported him. We caught up with Chris Brown for a chat that focused on his music and why he doesn’t feel the need to reinvent himself.
You’ve dedicated your latest album ‘F.A.M.E’ to your fans- why are your fans in particular the best?
Well first of all, my title of my album ‘F.A.M.E.’ Fans Are My Everything – it just I guess defines everything Chris Brown is. I mean, a year ago, two years ago I was just thinking man; my career could be over or whatever the case may be. But my fans and my supporters actually gave me a second chance, believed in me and knew how much I’ve been through, and how I’ve learned from it and grown as a man. So being able to dedicate my album to my fans and not just try to make it a product so people can just buy is it what I’m about. I put out three mixtapes in one year, just free music. Not even doing a gang of covers or other peoples songs. I was doing my own kind of music and just regular songs and just giving that content away just showing them how much I appreciate their support. So I think this album, all in all, is just my feelings, my thought process throughout this whole time, just me and where I’m at in my head and where I am with my life right now.
Hassling Kanye West in the middle of a radio interview is not usually a great idea, but it paid off big time for Sean Anderson. Big Sean not only left a big impression but also a demo tape, a recording which eventually saw him signed up to West’s GOOD Music label. Under West’s tutelage Sean got cracking with a trio of mixtapes to lay the ground for his debut album, the appropriately titled ‘Finally Famous’. The album not only featured a massive roll-call of A-list contributors, The Dream, Drake to Mr. Hudson and Mike Posner to name a few, but also had Mr West in the producer’s chair. ‘My Last’ was the first single from the album and sees Sean team up with Chris Brown and legendary Chicago producer No I.D (Common, Jermaine Dupri) to come up with a piano driven number underpinned by some neat chord progressions and rolling percussion. Brown adds a smooth touch to the choruses but it’s really a platform for Sean to show what he’s made of.
Big Sean is one of the latest rapper’s to be climbing the ladder of stardom following two of our tips for 2011; CyHi Da Prynce and Wiz Khalifa. Unlike Khalifa, Big Sean was picked up by the one and only KanYe West back in 2007, signing him to his G.O.O.D. Music label. However this wasn’t the first time Yeezy had encountered the rapper. Back in 2005, Big Sean was spotted outside WHTD 102.7FM, while KanYe was on-air. Sean approached West while he was leaving the station and dropped a spontaneous freestyle, allowing KanYe to grasp the talent and also his mixtape. Two years later, Big Sean released another mixtape called ‘Finally Famous Vol 1’. This received critical acclaim from The Source magazine and Mr. West eventually snapped him up.
Big Sean, real name Sean Anderson, has worked with a numerous amount of Hip-Hop stars from Bun B, Curren$y, Tyga, Drake and even Mike Posner in his past mixtapes. Now Sean is working on his debut with help from his peers including; KanYe, Pharrell, Eminem and Kid CuDi just to name a few. The album is tipped for release in August this year, but in the meantime Sean has hooked up with Chris Brown to release his debut single ‘My Last’ which was made available on iTunes 1st March. The Hip-Hop track has a smooth ballad feel, rolling pianos and classic big kick drums and crunchy snares. Chris Brown adds the hook and delivers a well polished touch to the song.
2011 looks to be a successful year for style icon Big Sean, a character that will no doubt pop up in further collaborations and future hits. Check out the video for ‘My Last’ here.
For the last two weeks, UK urban star Chipmunk has topped our UK Pre-release Chart with his new single ‘Champion’. The track sees the London MC join forces with Chris Brown, who delivers an emotive verse that has particular resonance considering Brown’s well documented problems. The collaboration is taken from Chipmunk’s forthcoming second album, ‘Transition’, which follows on from his platinum selling debut ‘I Am Chipmunk’. His steady rise puts him firmly within an ever expanding group of UK Urban artists who are dominating the European charts - including N-Dubz, Tine Tempah and Tinchy Stryder.
With ‘Champion’ ready to drop next week, we grabbed a few minutes with the man himself. We discussed a number of topics, ranging from his ever expanding tattoo collection and if he has plans to take his music to the States. To find out how his duet with Chris Brown came together and what we can expect from ‘Transition’ click on the link below. Read more…
Think The Clangers meeting Lloyd Banks’ ‘Beemer, Benz Or Bentley’. This ‘weird style’ Hip-Hop track produced by Diplo and Afrojack was quickly snapped up by Chris Brown and friends. The producers, known for their dance anthems, collaborated together to make this quirky and bass heavy track.
Chris Brown dips his toes into a repetitive attempt at speed rapping in the beginning, maybe something he taught himself while doing community service, warming us up for the notoriously quick mouthed Busta Rhymes. Assuming Busta is inhaling as much oxygen as he can while Brown is rapping; Mr. Rhymes unleashes a ridiculous spray of bars reclaiming the title of fastest rapper in the west. Some of his lyrics are duplicated, but it’s certainly worth taking some time out of your day to listen to. Lil Wayne is next and doesn’t do too badly, dropping a verse that’s reminiscent of Weezy’s old style of rapping.
The rap skills of the trio carries the minimal beat into a hard hitting assault on the ears with an added feature of a catchy chorus. Due for release February 1st, ‘Look At Me Now’ has also made the cut onto Chris Brown’s forthcoming album F.A.M.E.
Shazam will keep you updated on their success in our tag charts.
Chipmunk’s collaboration with Chris Brown looks set to silence any doubters as it claims its second week at number one in the Shazam Pre-release Tag Chart.
