Books

Book Review: Jessica Simpson – Open Book

Jessica Simpson rode the wave of teen pop singers during the late 90s/early 00s when the likes of Britney Spears and Christina Aguilera were dominating the charts. She never quite found the same musical success that Spears and Aguilera did, but became a household name after her marriage to 98 Degrees singer Nick Lachey led to the hit MTV series Newlyweds. In “Open Book,” Simpson recounts her struggles in the music business, relationships with her […]

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Music

Best Albums of 2019

As usual, my “Best Albums of 2019” list is dominated by the female artists: Maren, Taylor, Miranda and P!nk all put out stellar efforts this year. Sara Barellies returned from a long musical hiatus to drop another gorgeous lyric and piano driven masterpiece and the Jonas Brothers make a comeback I didn’t know I needed. Here are my favorite albums of 2019, in no particular order! GIRL – Maren Morris In her follow up to […]

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Music

Favorite Albums of 2016

There were some pretty good albums released in 2016. Here are my favorites for the year. Keith Urban – Ripcord With each album, Keith Urban seems to move further and further from the country sound. Ripcord is no exception and infuses EDM with banjos and synth beats. There’s even  a collaboration with Pitbull on the track “Sun Don’t Let Me Down.” It may not be traditional country but it’s still a fun, upbeat pop-country album […]

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Music

Concert List

 I’ve been going to live concerts since before I can remember. My parents took me along to Bluegrass and Irish festivals almost before I could say the word “music”  and going to live shows has sort of become a part of who I am. I decided it’s probably a good idea to write down a list of every performer that I’ve seen (or can remember seeing). The only performers I didn’t list are from the […]

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Music

Album Review: Avril Lavigne (Self Titled)

Avril Lavigne – Avril Lavigne Before Taylor Swift and Miley Cyrus, there was Avril Lavigne, a tiny, teenaged, tie-wearing Canadian pop/punk princess who topped the charts with hits like “Complicated” and “I’m With You.”  Now, thirteen years later, Avril’s pushing thirty, recently married for the second time and desperately still trying to connect to today’s youth. And therein lies some of the problem with Avril Lavigne’s fifth, self-titled album (out November 5th). Songs like “Rock […]

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Music

Album Review: Bangerz, by Miley Cyrus

Album Review: Bangerz, Miley Cyrus Bangerz: Something that radiates unbelievable swell or swag. (Source: urbandictionary.com) And swag she does – Miley Cyrus’s new album Bangerz, her third post-Hannah Montana project, leans heavily on urban and hip hop stylings, courtesy of Atlanta based rap/hip-hop producer Mike Will Made It.  In fact, the entire direction of the album can pretty much be summed up in one line from her song “Do My Thang“: “Oh yeah I’m a southern belle, I told […]

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