The Star Online: Entertainment: Music
The Star Online: Entertainment: Music |
- Selena Gomez is spellbinding
- Guitar hero Lee 'Captain Fingers' Ritenour in KL
- Miley Cyrus' naked video smashes record
| Posted: Singer and actress Selena Gomez is proving she is ready to become pop's next princess. WHEN this writer was asked at the immigration counter at London Heathrow airport what he was doing in Britain, he boldly said: "I'm here for the Selena Gomez concert" Рand the lady behind the counter actually laughed. Clearly being neither a bopping teenager nor an obligated parent, I wasn't expected to even take the pop princess seriously, let alone fly halfway around the world just to see her live. But there must be a reason Selena Gomez is Рmore or less Рa household name at the tender age of 21, releasing her fourth studio album, Stars Dance, and starring in already her 12th movie. Some might say it's the power of Disney's shrewd marketing (even though her days with Disney are over). Others might say it's because she's a talented entertainer. Some even say it's because her relationship with Justin Bieber was a calculated move to climb up the celebrity ladder (cue dramatic conspiracy theory music). So if anything, curiosity alone should be a good enough reason to want to endure an entire night of insanely high-pitched screaming and exchanging sympathetic glances with parents in the crowd who seemed rather less curious than this writer.  Selena Gomez in action at the Music Hall in Amsterdam, Netherlands, a few days before her show in London. -- EPA/Ferdy Damman The screaming began at around 8pm in London, when opening act The Vamps took to the stage at London's iconic Hammersmith Apollo, which has just been renamed the Eventim Apollo after extensive renovations. With the likes of The Beatles, Queen, The Who, Bruce Springsteen and Prince having graced the stage there, it must be somewhat ironic for music lovers that it was Gomez Рone of the biggest stars of the current tween-dominated music industry Рwho ushered in this new era for the venue with her two-night stint. After a decent performance from The Vamps, a four-piece English pop-rock band who made it big off some Рsurprise, surprise РYouTube covers, Gomez took to the stage in an outfit that has already had tongues wagging in tabloids and on celebrity gossip sites. She had a sheer white top on top of a black bra, along with a pair of leather hot pants. Not quite Miley Cyrus garb, but risqu̩ enough for a concert full of tweens. What followed was all hair, legs and gyrating hips. If most of her songs and her image are decidedly (and probably by design) family-friendly, her live performances are definitely more sexy. Gomez showed off her full repertoire of non-Disney dance moves alongside two dancers and a really tight four-piece band. Her performance had some tabloid websites trying to pull her into Cyrus territory by playing up how she was spotted doing a move that vaguely resembled twerking. But unlike some of her ex-Disney peers, Gomez managed to keep it classy for the 3,500 or so teenagers in the audience, performing songs like Love You Like A Love Song, Who Says and her latest hit, Come And Get It. Clearly eager to showcase her vocal chops, Gomez then dialled the dancing back a little to do a couple of folksy covers, including little known singer-songwriter Priscilla Ahn's Dream, where she played the harmonica as well. "I love doing covers, because it gives you a little insight into the kind of music I like, the songs I listen to when I'm having a bad day," she said. But while her vocal ability and range are limited, her star quality is undeniable. There are singers, and there are entertainers. Few excel at being both, and Gomez quite frankly is not one of them. But she is an entertainer through and through, one who last weekend simply commanded the stage and her audience РHaving grown up with a single mother who worked several jobs just to make ends meet, she always seems to have a certain emotional connection with her audience. She was often bullied at school, and has spoken about her childhood despair at her parents' broken marriage. Gomez also had to work her way up in the entertainment business, auditioning for small TV roles (where she would meet fellow future child star Demi Lovato) and eventually bagging her first gig as a recurring character on Barney And Friends. Her big break came when she was cast for the lead role in the hit Disney Channel series Wizards Of Waverly Place, and from there, she just never looked back. "One thing important to me is that (the fans) trust me," she said, not long after a video montage depicting all the rumours and gossip that follow her, including a few not-so-subtle references to her break-up with Justin Bieber. "We all have those days when we can't deal with stuff and the things people are saying about us on social media. "But if people are telling you you're not perfect the way you are, or you're not good enough, don't listen to them, because who says that?" she added, to even more piercing screams of approval as she went straight into the self-affirming Who Says. Not long after that was the end and the encore, for which she saved Come And Get It. R.AGE had a meet and greet with Gomez after the show, and she looked absolutely spent after two hours of nearly non-stop dancing and singing; dressed casually in a loose T-shirt, black tights and a big beanie over her head. But such is the life of a teen pop star that after some short pleasantries, she still had to head out to the gates to take some pictures with a pretty large crowd of fans who had stayed back hoping to catch a glimpse of her. I left the Eventim Apollo more convinced than ever that the lady at immigration was right to laugh РSelena Gomez is not someone a guy like me should be interested in Рbut that doesn't mean she doesn't deserve props for what she's achieved. |
| Guitar hero Lee 'Captain Fingers' Ritenour in KL Posted: The legendary guitarist is looking for new talent. OVER the past 50 years, contemporary jazz guitarist Lee Ritenour has enjoyed an eclectic career with multiple accolades but his current mission is to nurture young talent. As the creator of Ritenour Rhythm Sessions Competition, the Grammy award-winning musician is on a campaign to discover new talent. Originally created for guitars only, the competition now includes other instruments. The event started in 2010 when he celebrated his 50th year of playing the guitar. "I was aware that many talented musicians were using YouTube to get their start. In 2010, I recorded an All-Star/legends guitar record called Six String Theory. I had many legendary guitarists recording with me but then I also thought it would be exciting ... to search for brand new talent for the record. That is how the contest started," says Ritenour in an e-mail interview. "In 2012, I started the Rhythm Session album and centred the release on the guitar. I wanted to have guest rhythm sections with great performers like Chick Corea, Stanley Clarke, Marcus Miller, etc. So, I thought that we should expand the competition to find a great rhythm section. The last track, Punta Del Soul, on the Rhythm Session release, included the winners of the guitar and rhythm competition and I really enjoyed the formula of mixing brand new talent with established talent on a level playing field." Ritenour and his band will be performing tomorrow at the Kuala Lumpur International Jazz Festival (KLIJF). Fans can expect a diverse set from him. Making music is what he does best so he continues to churn out albums and works hard at it. "My albums are like my extended family so it's very hard to pick my favourite, but a few that stand out include Captain Fingers, Rit, Harlequin, Rio, Festival, Stolen Moments, Wes Bound and Six String Theory. "Inspiration comes from different places but song writing is like anything in life ... the more you do it, the better it gets," adds the 61-year-old guitarist. He was five when he started strumming by putting rubber bands on broomsticks. His father, though not a professional musician, was musical, and bought him a guitar when he was eight. He recalls: "It was in the 1960s and ... rock, blues, folk and jazz were all exploding and the guitar was all over the television. So as an eight-year-old I was influenced by all that. My father introduced me to jazz and by the age of 12, I knew that I wanted to play professionally!" At 16, he played his first gig with the Mamas & The Papas and at 18, played with Lena Horne and Tony Bennett. Ritenour was given the moniker "Captain Fingers", because of his manual dexterity on the guitar. He cites guitarist Wes Montgomery, who introduced the use of octaves in both melody and improvisation, as his greatest influence. From rock to blues to jazz, his diverse music became the foundation of over 3,000 sessions as a young guitarist with a broad spectrum of artistes (Pink Floyd, Steely Dan, Dizzy Gillespie, Sonny Rollins, Joe Henderson, B.B. King, Frank Sinatra, Simon & Garfunkel and more). With over 40 albums to his name, he has played with some of the greatest musicians, but Ritenour's favourite collaborator remains his good friend, Dave Grusin. Ritenour stays on top of his game by trying to discover new music and new players to play with, irrespective of whether they're established legends or up-and-coming young ones. For aspiring jazz guitarists, Ritenour has this to say: "Study all kinds of music and study with good teachers; don't just copy from YouTube videos! Try to come up with your own style and don't copy any one guitarist too much." The KLIJF will take place on Sept 14 from 11am to midnight at Universiti Malaya. Festival Village entry tickets are priced at RM60 while all access tickets begin from RM138. Tickets are available at: www.tickethotline.com.my or by calling (03) 7725-1177. Log on to www.klinternationaljazz.com for information. |
| Miley Cyrus' naked video smashes record Posted: Singer's 'Wrecking Ball' has most views on Vevo in first 24 hours. Miley Cyrus' image overhaul has attracted record-breaking attention. The 20-year-old pop singer's new music video Wrecking Ball, which features her naked, has shattered the record for most views on Vevo in the first 24 hours, with 19.3 million views across the music video platform. This isn't the first time Cyrus has reigned supreme over Vevo, though. We Can't Stop, the first single from her upcoming album, Bangerz, broke a previous record when it debuted on Vevoin June. One Direction's Best Song Ever stole the title in July when the music video hit 12.3 million views in 24 hours. In the larger YouTube landscape, Psy's Gentleman became the first music video to rack up over 20 million views in its first 24 hours last April. Cyrus' was shy of breaking any records outside of Vevo, but she did follow in Psy's footsteps by pummeling Justin Bieber's 2012 hit Boyfriend, which debuted last year with eight million views in the first 24 hours. Cyrus' Wrecking Ball is currently approaching 22.5 million, and is even more revealing than her controversial VMA performance, which apparently has given her the boost in attention she was hoping for. Still, there were some drawbacks. Vogue editor Anna Wintour was decided to nix Cyrus' appearance on the December issue's cover in wake of the twerknado that rolled through the media after Cyrus took the VMA stage in skin-coloured under garments last month, and proceeded to back her butt into the crotch of married man Robin Thicke. Cyrus may not be too worried about losing the high-profile publicity, though, because she's already gotten plenty of it - even if a lot of it wasn't all that flattering - and she doesn't "pay attention to the negative" noise surrounding her career. Instead, she's just thanking her fans for the success. "Y'all did went so above and beyond with wrecking ball :) I love you so much and thank you for breaking the vevo record!!!," she tweeted on Tuesday afternoon. Bangerz, her 13-track new album which features Britney Spears, goes on sale on Oct 8. – Reuters |
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