3 Most Famous Instances of Alleged Pop Plagiarism

Every art form, including the songwriting process often involves ‘borrowing’ with only so many chords available to musicians.

Photobucket

 

However, this is no different when it comes to the lyrics as well, and some of pop’s greatest acts have acknowledged that their songs have been influenced greatly by other people’s music and writing.

With that said, there’s a distinct line between ‘being influenced’ and ‘outright plagiarism’. This fact has resurfaced, thanks to a lawsuit that was filed against performers Owl City and Carla Rae Jepsen for the latter.

So, here are 3 popular examples of pop plagiarism as we know it:

#1: Michael Jackson – Will you be there

It wasn’t once but twice that the courts tried MJ for seemingly adding a recording made by the Cleveland Symphony Orchestra of Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony while also not giving the original composer credit. However, it was also an Italian songwriter who found similarities between his song ‘Swans of Balaka’ and the smash hit. While the first lawsuit was settled out of court, MJ wasn’t held responsible for the latter many years later.

#2: Lady Gaga – Born this Way

It’s not only Jessica Simpson but Lady Gaga as well who has taken a page out of Madonna’s book. In fact, the latter’s hit, Born this way, while being a smash hit, is considered by critics to sound very similar to ‘Express yourself’. Of course, while she has never sued Lady Gaga, she does perform both these songs to remind her audience who came first.

#3: Avril Lavigne – Girlfriend

When Lavigne made ‘Girlfriend’ in 2007, it turned out to be a massive hit. However, the song also resembled one made in the 70s by a band called Rubinoos who were talented but never really made it to the charts then. A confidential out-of-court settlement ensured that this matter was never heard of again with Lavigne and Dr. Luke keeping the songwriting credits.

3 Surprising Moments at the American Music Awards

Even if you didn’t catch the American Music Awards, it’s pretty obvious who won most of the awards. Yes, Justin Bieber seemed to feature pretty much everywhere including Favorite Male Artist, Pop/Rock Album of the Year and Artist of the Year.

Photobucket

While it wasn’t surprising that there weren’t any surprises as to who the winners were, the televised broadcast told a different story.

So here are 3 surprising moments that you might have missed at the American Music Awards:

#1: Justin Bieber’s Mom

Although Bieber was seen with Selena Gomez after the ceremony, he did what any young single boy would do – bring his mom in place of his ‘significant other’ to the awards ceremony. If that wasn’t enough, she even shared the stage with him to accept the ‘Artist of the Year’ award, and thanked her for always believing in him.

#2: The PSY and MC Hammer Performance

While PSY’s performance of his hit single, ‘Gangnam Style’, at the awards ceremony wasn’t the surprising part – it was his special guest, MC Hammer that added that element of surprise to the performance. In fact, some people think that it’s surprising that this hadn’t happened already.

#3: P!nk’s rendition of ‘Try’

While it’s obvious that the American Music Awards brings together some of the biggest names that perform at the show, this year’s show was no different – with Christina Aguilera, Nicki Minaj and Taylor Swift all doing their thing.

However, it was P!nk’s performance of ‘Try’ that really pushed the limits – one that included modern dance and body paint but most of all, burning down the set in the end.

Beyonce Set To Perform During Half-Time At The Superbowl, Scheduled For February 3, 2013

Now there’s a reason for women to watch the Super Bowl along with football lovers as Beyonce is set to perform on the half-time show.

Photobucket

The Super Bowl is set for February 3, 2012 at the Mercedez-Benz SuperDome in New Orleans, and with Beyonce’s photo on Tumblr sporting eye black, with ‘Feb.3’ on one eye and ‘2013’ on the other, thereafter, the NFL confirmed that she was to be the half-time show performer.

It is also likely that if her show involves collaborations with other artistes, her husband (and rapper) Jay-Z, Kelly Rowland and Michelle Williams who were her Destiny’s Child bandmates will also perform at the Pepsi NFL Halftime Show.

This is not the first time that Beyonce will be performing at the Super Bowl as she had sang the National Anthem in 2004 in her hometown in Houston as the New England Patriots played (and defeated) the Carolina Panthers. Since then, her hits such as ‘Crazy in Love’, ‘Irreplaceable’ and ‘Single Ladies (Put a Ring on it) in pop and R&B, have also garnered her 16 Grammy awards.

Earlier this year, Madonna performed at half-time of the Super Bowl in February 2012 along with acts such as LMFAO, M.I.A, Nicki Minaj and CeeLo Green – a performance that was seen by an average of 114 million people, and which according to Nielsen Co., was a number higher than those who watch the game itself.

The last time New Orleans hosted a Super Bowl was in 2002, and it will be the first time that they host the championship in the city ever since the Louisiana SuperDome was destroyed by Hurricane Katrina in 2005.

3 Things You Need to Know about Gangnam Style

YouTube has declared PSY’s “Gangnam Style” as the most liked video while it continues to rack up the views in large numbers, thanks to its infectious groove and simplistic horse-riding dancing routine.

Photobucket

 

Considering the popularity of the song, one might wonder whether the song is a one-hit wonder or is there more than meets the eye about the musician, K-pop and Gangnam Style itself.

So, here are 3 things you need to know about Gangnam Style:

#1: Park Jae-Sang aka PSY is considered to be an all-round entertainer being a comedian, dancer, music video creator and most of all, a musician who studied at the Berklee School of Music. In fact, he’s been in the news for all the wrong reasons, especially for his satirical lyrics before the song exploded on to the international scene.

#2: The song itself is based on Beverly Hills of Seoul – the Gangnam District. When you watch the song closely, you’ll find that it pokes fun at the lifestyles of some of the richest people who live in the Gangnam district. What the song also pokes fun at is people who are trying to be so part of the phenomenon known as ‘Gangnam Style’ – the posers and wannabes!

#3: With the song hardly reflecting the glossy music videos that are churned out by K-Pop artistes, it is also considered to be the least hip-hop of Korea’s hip-hop artists. In other words, and as experts and fans consider it to be great Asian electro-pop with a well-created video that is accompanied by classic comic timing. Probably the 530 million views (and still counting) make that abundantly clear.

3 Rock Stars that are ‘Class Acts’

If there’s anything that rock stars or musicians aren’t necessarily associated with, it’s getting high grades in their classes leave alone, obtaining college degrees or Doctorates. Yet the truth is that there are a few top notch musicians who would have made it in the ‘real world’ even if their music careers didn’t pan out – thanks to enviable grades in college and further.

Photobucket

So, here are 3 Rock stars that are ‘class acts’:

#1: Brian May

If you didn’t know Brian May, he is the guitarist for Queen, and has been instrumental in producing hits such as ‘We Will Rock You” among others that has immortalized the band in Rock N Roll History. However, when it comes to his academics, by the time Queen was formed in 1971, he had already earned a Bachelor’s degree in Math and Science and was working on his doctorate which he obtained in 2008 in astrophysics.

#2: Tom Scholz

Tom Scholz was not only one of the founding members of the band, Boston but he played almost every instrument while being responsible for most of their hits. Bu that’s not all – he earned a B.S and an M.S in mechanical engineering at MIT and also built the home studio which the band used to record their first hit. The rest they say is history, and the demo sold 17 million copies.

#3: Tom Morello

While being a guitarist for both Rage against the Machine and Audioslave, he graduated from Harvard with a degree in social studies. He not only worked with Alan Cranston, the U.S Senator, but also wrote an editorial recently in the Rolling Stones magazine expressing his disappointment about when Paul Ryan, the Republican vice-presidential nominee, said that Rage Against the Machine was one of his favorite bands.

Why Tobymac and Lecrae Have Conquered The Itunes And Billboard Top 200 Charts

In recent times, artists such as TobyMac and Lecrae, who are prominent Christian acts, have released albums whose songs have been climbing the Billboard Top 200 Chart, and have mainstream artists listening to their music as well.

Photobucket

In speaking of the way people are viewing Christian music differently, TobyMac puts it in perspective, in saying, “The wall is coming down between Christian music and Christians making music. And this is a beautiful thing.”

It is no coincidence that TobyMac’s album ‘Eye on It’, and who was part of the trio known as DC Talk until 2000, is the first Christian artist whose album has debuted at No.1 on the Billboard Top 200 chart since Bob Carlisle’s ‘Butterfly Kisses’ in 1997.

Lecrae’s album ‘Gravity’, a hip-hop artist as well as a devout Christian, has debuted at No. 3 on the Billboard chart while already claiming the top spot on iTunes already. He, much like TobyMac who calls his music ‘schizophrenic pop’, considers himself to be an authentic hip-hop artist with an alternative message that speaks of the passion for his faith.

Their success, according to the CEO and President of Word Entertainment, Rod Riley, can be attributed to the fact that artists, producers and writers have all substantially grown in talent and which is why Christian music has not only grown but is now enjoying crossover success.

However, there are certain challenges that Christian artists face today, and that is because of the Christian label and affiliation. While some bands like Switchfoot, FlyLeaf and P.O.D avoid the Christian label in order to avoid the stigma that comes with it – Lecrae and TobyMac continue to keep Jesus up, front and center in their music.

Are There Internet Radio Stations?

Internet radio stations are something that seems to be becoming very popular. You will find that there are so many different choices to choose from and a lot of them will even offer you free trials and things of that nature before you pay any money to subscribe. Not to mention the fact that if you have a smart phone after you create your account on line you may even be able to find that app in the market place so you can listen to your favorite stations on your phone as well.

Photobucket

You will be amazed by all of the choices that you have to choose from. If you are a country lover there will be country music available and if you are a jazz lover you can customize the station so you can listen to strictly that also. Not to mention the fact that you can narrow it down even more to your favorite artists. However, some radio stations are not too advanced so you will still hear music that you may not be interested in yet it will be closer to the artist’s style that you chose.

Everyone has different tastes when it comes to music. Some people like 80s music while others do not. Whatever the case may be you will find that you can customize your listening experience to fit your needs perfectly. You never have to worry about listening to rap, gospel, hip hop, jazz or any other genre that you do not want to again.