Happy Valentine's Day!

"Love is but the discovery of ourselves in others, and the delight in the recognition."

Hey everyone! Hope you had a great week! Excited for Valentine's Day? In honor of Valentine's Day, I decided to dedicate this blog post to love songs...of course, they are plenty, but I'd thought I'd share a few with you to share with your special someone if you'd like. :)

I was somewhat braindead when I was trying to think of a list to share with you guys, so I'd like to give a special shoutout and thanks to Donna and Ariel (our very own advice DekoPosh columnist) for helping me out! :)

"And I love her"--The Beatles

Love this song...any song by The Beatles is great!

"Can't help falling in love"--Elvis Presley
"Love Me Tender"--Elvis Presley

Same with Elvis Presley...amazing music. I remember singing "Love Me Tender" and almost becoming obsessed with it back in the 4th grade.

"How did I fall in love with you--Backstreet Boys

Backstreet Boys will always be a favorite of mine...and "How did I fall in love with you" is a great song!

"I Could Fall In Love"--Selena

Selena <3 She was a resident of where I live and was also killed here...we have a museum, a statue, and an auditorium in her memory. Amazing song and amazing performer.

"Sweet Caroline"--Neil Diamond

Love this song too! I remember hearing the Jonas Brothers sing it at the Houston concert I went to on their world tour! So awesome!

"Please Be Mine"--Jonas Brothers

I realize not all of you guys may be Jonas Brothers fans, but this song is absolutely amazing. "Please Be Mine" was the very first song they wrote together and it'll always remain one of my favorites. Such a sweet song and the acousticness (is that a word?) is my favorite. :)

"Then"--Brad Paisley

Love love LOVE this song. I first heard this song on our Bus Radio and fell in love with that. I had never heard Brad Paisley's music until then so it really opened my eyes to country music.

"Hey There Delilah"--Plain White T's

This one's not only one of my favorites, but my sister's as well. Such a cute song and if you haven't checked out the video, check it out! It's the perfect love song. :)

"Morning Light"--Truman

Donna suggested this one :P I haven't heard it yet, but I'm gonna check it out!

Some of the ones Ariel suggested...check them out too! :)

"Two is better than one"--Boys Like Girls
"Only you can love me this way"--Keith Urban
"This never happened before"--Paul McCartney

Hope you guys listen to some of these songs...you never know which ones might end up on your favorites!! Have a great Valentine's Day guys! :)

--Labanya

Hope for Haiti

Hey everyone! Hope you guys have been having a great weekend so far. As a lot of you have probably already heard, Haiti is currently suffering from post-earthquake damages. I kindly ask that you please keep Haiti in your thoughts and those of you who are religious, in your prayers, because they really do need help to get their country and lives back today. I wanted to dedicate this post to the Hope for Haiti concert and telethon that was held last night to help raise money to help Haiti. Live performances from Justin Timberlake, Jennifer Hudson, Taylor Swift, and more helped to raise funds for the grief stricken country and although the amount raised hasn't been reported yet, the event was a success. Over a million people called to help in whichever way they could and celebs like Nick Jonas, Joe Jonas, Selena Gomez, Taylor Swift, Keke Palmer, and Taylor Lautner helped answer phones during the telethon and collect funds. iTunes is also allowing customers to buy the full 2-hour performance video for just $1.99 (original price would be around $7.99) in order to hopefully help raise more funds for Haiti. Everyone can help during this difficult time. You can text "HAITI" to 90999 to donate $10 to Red Cross relief efforts in Haiti. The $10 is added onto your phone bill and is probably the easiest way you can help. Also, help organize a drive at your school where students can donate blankets, canned food, etc to help the Haitian victims. Haiti can really use all the help and every penny.

Also, on a lighter note, I am very excited to say that I'll be starting interviews with music stars this week!! Stay tuned for future blogs because some of them will include interviews from up and coming artists!! :)

Have a great week!

-Labanya

Happy Holidays!!

Hey everyone!! Hope all of you enjoyed Christmas and those of you who don't celebrate, I hope you had a great day!! Although we're not Christian, we celebrated it as well! :) I personally love the holiday spirit: the fun, the laughter, the joy in the air. To me, Christmas is really the most wonderful time of the year. It's a great time to show your family, friends, and loved ones how much you care about each other. And of course, leading up to Christmas, not only did we shop for each other, we heard Christmas music everywhere we went!! Even my teachers put up decorations, wore Santa hats, and played music in class about a month before Christmas!! :)

Growing up, I remember singing in Christmas/holiday concerts at school, where the whole grade would get together and sing favorites like "Rudolph the red-nosed Reindeer" and "Deck the Halls," as well as some others that weren't necessarily as popular. Needless to say, those are still a part of my favorites and I love singing them. It helps to get me in the holiday spirit...and to enjoy and be thankful for what I have.

We've all heard songs like "Silent Night" and "Jingle Bells," but did you know that a lot of artists have recorded these traditional songs, and have added their own touch? Some even record a separate Christmas/holiday album to release. I haven't listened to all of them, but I love Aly & AJ's (they're now known as 78violet) Acoustic Hearts of Winter album that was released a couple years back. Recently, I've heard David Archuleta perform songs off of his album, Christmas From the Heart, and they're all really great too. Also, if you're a big Taylor Swift fan, and haven't checked hers out yet, check it out. I haven't checked it out yet, but I'm sure it's great. It's called Sounds of the Season. Check them out if you get the chance to :)

And lastly, there are a lot of "remixed" songs that I absolutely love to listen to around this time of the year. For example, "Do you hear what I hear" has been performed by Carrie Underwood, Copeland, Whitney Houston, and a lot of other great artists. The Copeland version is on my favorites right now!! :)

Alright guys, I'll talk to you later!! Enjoy your week!! Have a happy new year!!

-Labanya <3

Movie Suggestion: Secret Life of Bees

Short post tonight because I have to finish studying for my midterms, but this is another good holiday good-feeling movie. This movie is one of my new favorites, based on the historical novel by Sue Monk Kidd. Dakota Fanning is phenomenal as Lily Owens, a 14-year-old girl living with a neglectful father, while trying to deal with the fact that as a kid, she accidentally murdered her mother. Her story truly begins when she runs away from home and finds solace at the flamenco pink residence of the Boatwright sister - August, May, and June – and their world away from the world.

Musical Mania!!

Hey everyone!! Hope all of you are having a fantastic weekend so far!! I just took my English final this past Monday...and am excited to say that I almost made a perfect score on the final!! :) Glad that it is over, even though midterms will be coming up in early January.

So my friend and I were talking about movies and the subject of musicals came up...and yes, I decided to talk to you guys about musicals today!!

Musicals are yet another great way to explore music...and you never know what you might end up liking. I, personally, haven't seen any musicals, but I have a lot of friends who have seen Broadway shows and musicals. They didn't think they would become fans, but guess what? They did. :)

And of course, there have been a lot of musicals, but some of the well-known ones include:

-Mary Poppins
-High School Musical
-High School Musical 2
-High School Musical 3
-Chicago
-Les Miserables
-Jersey Boys
-Dream Girls
-Hairspray

AND much, much more!! Sometimes, you can probably find that a lot of movies have been turned into musicals. For example, Beauty and the Beast, and The Little Mermaid. I have only seen snippets of those two, but they look amazing! Personally, I love the singing and dancing that gets involved and there is so much energy that comes off of the performers!! The music is great and lively, and definitely addicting.

Also, a lot of the movies my parents watch--Hindi and Bengali--tend to be similar to musicals because they are filled with songs--and of course, the singing and dancing. If you watch a Hindi movie, you will probably find that there is at least one song every 30 minutes and the movies tend to be about 3-4 hrs on average. The songs are long too and they resemble musicals. They're great! If you ever get a chance, be sure to check them out!

Alrighty guys, that's it for tonight; have a safe and enjoyable week!

-Labanya

Music quotes!

Hey everyone! Hope all of you are having a fabulous weekend? Are you excited for the winter holidays? :)

Just thought I'd keep today's blog short, simple, and sweet, and share with you some great music quotes!! Quotes are a great way to inspire and there are a lot of great ones about music!!

You can find picture quotes, such as these:

http://www.commentbuddy.com/comments/Quotes/quote9.png

http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i263/myspaceye/freeglittergraphics/glitter-graphics/general-graphics/music/lyrically_1.gif

http://media.photobucket.com/image/music%20quotes/Shellybelle10/Music/musicrock1vl4.jpg (<--this user has a lot of great ones by the way!!) And of course, just textual quotes, found on websites and in quote books, about music (I added some commentary on some of them :P):

"Don't play what's there, play what's not there."

"Music is what feelings sound like.”
I love this quote, mainly because, for me, it's true. You can put your own feelings and emotions into lyrics, which eventually transforms into a great song. A lot of great music have lyrics attached to emotion. That's what makes music so healing to the soul anyway. :P

"Music is enough for a lifetime, but a lifetime is not enough for music.”

"To stop the flow of music would be like the stopping of time itself, incredible and inconceivable."
Definitely true...music is constantly changing and adapting!!

"Music is love in search of a word."

"Music is the universal language of mankind"
Agreed! It's the one language most anyone can "speak!!" Babies included. :)

"Music does bring people together. It allows us to experience the same emotions. People everywhere are the same in heart and spirit."
Couldn't have said it better myself.

Let me know if you have any favorites you would like to share!! My apologies for this short and simple blog, but I have a final coming up soon and have to prepare for it!! I'll catch you guys next week!!

Have a wonderful week!!

~Labanya

Movie Suggestion: Love Actually

(Sorry it's a day late, readers! Had a Hamlet paper to write last night and forgot to post it)

This is a super cute Christmas story to get everyone in the Christmas spirit.


The movie is about eight people, all inter-connected, all falling in or out of love with the right and wrong people.
Take Sam for instance—an eight year old sweetheart who's completely in love with Joanna, the cute young America girl in his class
Or Jamie, who falls for Aurelia, the sweet Portuguese doesn't speak a lick of English.
And then of course there's Natalie, with her infamous thunder thighs.


These are only three of this movie's characters. There are plenty more, each one experiencing a different type of relationship—love, lust, heartache, and everything in between. All different types of love are explored—romantic, family, brotherly, and more. And it goes over the central message about love: that there's no true beginning or end. Love is infinite.


Now doesn't that feel Christmas-y? This story is a great holiday season opener. It’s guaranteed to warm your heart any cold winter’s night.

Do you listen to the radio?

Hey everyone!! Hope all of you are having an awesome weekend so far...did you enjoy Thanksgiving? :) My sister and I threw ourselves a mini-sleepover that night and guess how we partied? By listening to the music--the radio specifically, which is coincidentally, the topic of discussion for my blog today!! ;)

Radio is a great way to "discover" new music, whether it be different songs (which normally ends up being the most popular ones at the time), different genres, or different (and sometimes new) artists. Both my sister and I "discovered" our favorite bands and artists through the radio actually...and we're thankful we listened the day that we did (those songs are still on our favorites!!)

And of course there are a lot of local ones (for example, in my area, HOTZ95 is a popular one) and then, there are a lot of national ones too....for example:

Radio Disney (www.radiodisney.com <--covers all of your favorite Disney artists + more!!)
Kidd Kraddick (www.kiddlive.com <--Morning radio show, but they bring a lot of popular artists to interview (Jonas Brothers, Ashley Tisdale, Miley Cyrus, Colbie Caillat, and a lot of non musicians like Ashley Greene from Twilight) )
Radio shows like Ryan Seacrest's AT 40 countdown play the top 40 songs based on radio airplay...it's a great way to listen to new songs and every once in a while, artists host or co-host the show :)

Radio is definitely a great way to find new music and/or artists...and you never know, what you thought you didn't like three years ago may be your new favorite genre. You'll never know, unless you expand your horizons and listen to other types :) Let me know what your favorite stations are and why you love them...or if you discovered a favorite artist through radio, let me know also.

I'll catch you guys next week!

-Labanya

Are YOU ready for Turkey Day?

Hello all you beautiful people!! Hope you all are having a wonderful Thanksgiving break (those of you who are on one) and an excellent weekend!! Are you excited about Thanksgiving? I know I am, because this year, my sister and I will be doing almost all of the cooking and I can't wait to get started!! Speaking of the holidays, how many of you guys love holiday music? I, for one, can say that holiday music is one of my faves...and it definitely puts me in the holiday spirit!! :)

In honor of Thanksgiving, which is only days away, I'll be sharing some Thanksgiving songs with you guys!! Personally, I didn't know so many Thanksgiving songs existed...but now that I reminisce on past memories, I remember listening to some of them back in elementary school!! (Wouldn't it be fun to be a kid again?) Two of them include Everyday is Thanksgiving and Turkey Dinner Dance!! :) The songs are definitely silly, but catchy at the same time!! I have a feeling I might be sharing some of those with my little siblings this year!! :)

Also, really quick reminder before I forget, don't forget to catch the 2009 American Music Awards, tomorrow night (November 22)...check http://www.tvguide.com/ for local channels and time listings!! A lot of your favorite stars and celebs will be there, including Taylor Swift, Whitney Houston, Lady Gaga, Jay Z, and more!! Find out which star will take home the awards!! I hear Taylor Swift is up for quite a bit :)

Another quick reminder, don't forget to catch Keke Palmer, Mitchel Musso, Katharine McPhee, Tiffany Thorton, Jay Sean, Boys Like Girls, and much, much more on the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade!! The parade will air Thanksgiving Day, Thursday, November 26, at 9AM (CHECK YOUR LOCAL TIME LISTINGS AND CHANNELS!!!)!! I've watched the parade in the past with my family...you won't want to miss it!! :)

Alrighty, that's all for now friends. Have a safe and fun Thanksgiving with your family!! Eat lots of turkey!! :)

-Labanya

Movie Suggestion: NEW MOON

Ohhhh my gosh, ohhhhhh my gosh! I can't believe it's finally here. 12:01 tonight (or tomorrow morning, really) I'll be sitting in a jam-packed theater with other Twilight junkies watching NEW MOON! A shirtless TLaut, a depressed KStewart, a drop-deep-gorgeous RPatz.
What more could you want?!?!

Gahh! Words cannot express my excitement. So I'll wait and review it later on tonight :)

!!!

Get pumped!
I know I sure am.

Have you checked out the "Now" cd's?

Hey everyone! Hope all of you are having a fabulous weekend so far!! Did you all have a great Halloween? Can't believe it's November already...before we know it, the new year will be here (and I will be graduating :D)!!!

I was looking through my collection of cd's and decided to dedicate this post to a very special collection and tell you a little story. :)

I was walking through my local Target store a couple years back, music section of course :P, when I noticed a specific stack of cd's in one of the racks. The cover immediately caught my attention, not because it was bright and colorful, but because there was no particular artist's picture...or any pictures actually. All there was on the cover was a mixture of colors, along with the words "Now 26." So I bought the cd, after checking the back to see the songs and what kind of music it had, and needless to say, I fell in love with it.

If you guys haven't checked out the "Now" cd's yet, you definitely should. The "Now" cds normally contain top radio singles from different genres...all in one cd. For example, the Now 26 one had songs from Soulja Boy-Crank Dat to Daughtry-Over You. It's a great buy, especially if you like listening to the songs that are played on the radio, but don't necessarily want to buy an artist's entire cd just for one song or if you don't have iTunes or another music downloading site. Also, if you like listening to different genres, like me, it's all compiled on one cd, so it is really convenient. You may even discover that you like a certain artist. :)

I've only bought Now 26-29 so far, but I hope to buy the rest. For me, it's super convenient to get great songs all on one cd from 2-3 different genres!! And also, the songs that make it on there are great, catchy, popular tunes. You can check out their website, http://www.nowmusic.com/. They already have the next couple of cd's song listings up on there, as well as cd release dates!! The site also has a whole buncha other cool stuff; an app for your phone, videos, downloads, and more!! Check it out and let me know what you think!!

Alrighty guys, that's it for now, my apologies, but I'm gonna have to cut this blog a little short. Hope all of you have a wonderful week!!

-Labanya

Many Apologies and Reviews

Hey Readers,

So, I know I’ve neglected you for the last two weeks. I truly am sorry : (

It was completely unintentional, I promise. See…I had this little thing called Swine. (I always squawk when I say that word, like it’s associated with death or something, so if you could hear me it would sound like SWINE!) Really, it’s what I get after seventeen years of unhealthy eating and sleep deprivation. But still, I’m here to tell you: Swine? NO FUN.

But anyway, on to more important things. Like movies!

I had a lot of TV-watching time while I was lying on my sick bed, so I have a couple new BlockBuster suggestions for you.

Erin Brockovich

This is the story of a once-beauty-queen single mother who's seriously down on her luck. In desperate need of a job, she pottymouths her way into an office job where she stumbles upon a sketchy real estate case involving the Pacific Gas and Electric Company. With a little investigating, one discovery leads to another and sudden Erin’s knee deep in a cover-up and one of the biggest lawsuits this country has ever seen.

Contrary to popular belief, this is not your typical success story. No, no, no, Erin Brockovich is far from a cliché. There’s contaminated drinking water and partially exposed cleavage and enough witty comebacks to keep you laughing all through the night. And of course, the fact that it stars young(er) Julia Roberts makes this film an absolute must!

Speak

Melinda Sordino used to be a regular teen. And then IT happened. Now, feeling numb and unable to face the aftermath of this traumatic event, she turns completely inward, becoming a As her freshman year progresses, her fragmented past is slowly revealed through her sarcastic stream of consciousness, allowing the viewers to relate more closely to her troubling but worthwhile story.

This is such a touching film. I love Kirsten Stewart, and this is one of her earlier ones. With her haunting eyes and soft-spoken but powerful demeanor, she’s a knockout.

Music World--Hindi/Bengali/Spanish

"Music is the universal language of mankind." ~Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, Outre-Mer

Hey everyone! I apologize for not blogging at all the past two weeks....senior year has started a lot tougher than I thought but thankfully, I am slowly adjusting, adapting, and overcoming!! :) How's school going for all of you? Hopefully, you guys are all doing great!!

Anyway, for today's topic, I thought I would talk a little about music in different cultures!!

As I'm sure I've mentioned a million times before, music is something very close to my heart. It is my way of expressing myself--sometimes thru lyrics and other times, thru melody. English music isn't all I listen to though. My parents are both originally from Bangladesh (and my maternal grandmother grew up in India for some time) so I got a taste of Bengali and Hindi music as well. Some countries, like India for example, have started to incorporate English into their lyrics and I've found a lot of songs in Hindi movies especially that have "westernized" their music.

Bengali music, in my opinion, has very soft melodies. From what I have heard from my parents' cds and tapes, most of the music is love--relationships, family, etc. A lot of it also seems a bit on the mellow side. You will probably not find anything near rock or metal in bengali music. All of the singers tend to have softer voices and the melodies are often soothing...almost like lullabies. I have found a couple of tunes that are extremely catchy and easy to just get up and dance to. Unfortunately, I can't remember some of the names of the songs I really like, but you can definitely find a lot of the songs on YouTube (www.youtube.com) or by googling "bengali songs."

Hindi music, on the other hand, I find to be extremely lively and catchy...and of course, very easy to dance to. While surfing YouTube one day, I saw that a lot of users used Hindi songs to make videos about American celebrities (and the video turned out great too!!). It was really cool to not only watch the video, but it was awesome to see both of my cultures meshed into one video. Hindi music is probably one of my favorites. Even though most songs last about 5-6 minutes, the tunes and melodies are super catchy and it's really easy to get a piece of a song stuck in your head. My sister and I have performed to a lot of the songs too...and it isn't that hard to choreograph too either.

Some of my favorites:

-Lakdi Ki Kathi from a movie called Masoom (One of my all-time favorites....it's been a favorite since I was 4-5 yrs old) Watching this video brought back so many memories of listening to it!! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uafP78m_v9U

-Ghanan Ghanan (I love this song!! And I know this is a bit off topic, but I strongly suggest you watch the movie--Lagaan. A lot of my non-Indian friends have watched it, with subtitles, and loved it) Here's the actual clip of the song from the movie http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TpTCnl36gZI

-Deewana Hai Dekho (Also a great song from a great movie! It's from Kabhi Khushie Kabhi Gham...really sad movie, but great songs and plotline :) This song actually has some English parts in it...and it was really interesting to hear it in there) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B4RqHGxcpkM

Those three are just a couple of examples (I could go on and on :P) but if you are interested, PLEASE FEEL FREE TO LET ME KNOW!!! I would love to give you music or even movie suggestions if you're interested...so don't be shy. Hit me up on twitter (@Lalalabanya) or if you would like my e-mail, please leave me a comment down below.

Spanish music is also something I've listened to...well, not too much in depth, but I've heard a couple of songs on the radio here and there and last year in my AP Spanish 4 class. And although I can't really understand what they're saying, the songs are actually great!! :P I love listening to singers like Jennifer Lopez, Shakira, David Archuleta, etc, add in Spanish into their music. It's great to hear both languages in one song!!

Whoops, this blog is getting longer than I thought it would be...sorry about the length!! Enjoy the rest of your weekend and this upcoming week!!

Until next time,

Labanya

Movie Review: Love Happens

Too cute :)

A self-help author, Burke, (Eckhart) crosses paths with a floral designer, Eloise, (Aniston) when he comes to Seattle to teach a seminar. Even though they've met each other at the perfectly wrong time--Burke with his repressed pain and Eloise with her boy issues. Bother parties are struggling with the pain of loss, unwilling to move forward in fear of losing what was. As their lives become more intertwined, they realize that "love happens" when it wants to happen; that to truly live in the present, they have to learn to accept and then let go of the past.

Honestly: A little too cliché, a little too predictable for my taste. However, this movie was incredibly cute; it’s one of those films that makes your chest all feel warm and fuzzy with that uplifting feeling, the one that has you believing in true love, even if just for a moment.

Wanna help promote an artist/band?

Hey hey hey!! Hope all of you are having a fabulous weekend so far!! Can't believe October is already here!!

So I enjoyed talking to you guys about the different genres of music the past couple of weeks and this week, I have decided to talk to you about....*drum roll please* STREET TEAMS!! A street team is a team designed to help promote a band, artist, and sometimes even an event!! And guess what? You can help promote your favorite artist or band!!

You can either a.) join a street team and become a member or b.) create your own street team (some info on how to do so is here http://www.ehow.com/video_2378534_manage-music-street-team.html)

I hadn't thought about joining one until one of the fellow Push Play fans asked me if I would be interested in doing so. Street teams are not only a great way to help out an artist, event, and/or band, they are great in providing practice if you would like to eventually have a career in the music industry...especially in business and promotion. By the way, if you would like to join the official Push Play street team, go to www.fancorps.com to sign up, but please only do so if you are sure you will be able to help. There are great rewards for doing so. If you earn enough "store credit" points, you can "buy" meet and greet passes, backstage passes, t-shirts, and more with just you store credit points (no actual purchase necessary)!! Also, if you are interested in joining the PP Street Team, let me know (@Lalalabanya or just leave a comment on here) and I'll send you their manager's e-mail so you can contact her...she'll send you great promotional stuff that you can use to help spread the word!!

Other street teams you may be interested in joining:

http://www.jbstreetteam.com (Jonas Brothers)
http://www.myspace.com/honorsocietyst (Honor Society...for this one, you do have to create or currently have a myspace to join. There is also one for each state and there are some for other countries)
www.myspace.com/demilofficalstreetteam (Same as Honor Society's...you must have a myspace to join)
www.myspace.com/tsstusa (This is the USA Taylor Swift one)
http://beyonce.fancorps.com/signup/ (Beyonce)

Again, those are just a couple. Most artists and bands have one so you will probably be able to find the street teams just by googling them....if you need help finding a certain artist or band's street team, feel free to let me know and I'll do my best to try and help you!!

Alright, that's all for today, I'll catch you guys next week....enjoy the rest of your weekend and have a great week!!

-Labanya

Movie Suggestion: Fame

Hey readers!
Soooo...I know that this column is a day late and a Suggestion instead of a review but I do have a legit excuse! I just climbed out of my sickbed after a week of the flu (not Swine thank goodness, but a strand that is just as painful) and am currently buried under a mountain of I haven't had a chance to see my movie. Any movie, really...

But, anyway, this week's movie suggestion is : FAMEEEEEEE!
The remake of the 80s film that follows a group of students attending the NYC High School for Preforming Arts, this new film is supposed to be AH-MAZING, just as entertaining as the first. I guess we'll see. Another double-whammy of reviews next Thursday. Until then!

Genres of Music-Rap

Hola mis amigos!!! Hope all of you had a great week and are having an awesome weekend!! I know I'm trying my best but I'm exhausted. Senior year is wearing me out already!!

Anyway, today I'll be giving you guys some info on Rap music AKA Hip Hop (Some rap can also called R&B). Rap is something that started back in the '70's and is an incredibly popular genre nowadays. According to ez-tracks.com, "today hip hop music is one of the fastest growing and most popular forms of music in America or the world," despite the controversial lyrics contained in some of the songs.

Like other songs, most rap songs contain personal stories, important events, social events, or just something the writer/artist went through during a period in their life. The rhythmic beats and the personalized messages that are transmitted through the songs are two reasons why rap music is so popular nowadays. For some, the lyrics are extremely relatable and rhythm is catchy. Rap music also helped bring about breakdancing as well.

And although rap music is catchy and often has good messages, it's not for everyone. The lyrics sometimes talk about violence, drugs, and other topics which may not be suitable for some. But it still remains a popular genre. For me, a lot of the songs are super catchy!! Some of my favorites include:

-Party Like a Rockstar-Shop Boyz
-Get it Shawty-Lloyd
-Make me Better-Fabulous
-Don't Matter-Akon
-Lose Yourself-Eminem

Alright guys, my apologies for the short blog, but that's it for today!! Have a great week everyone!

-Labanya

Learning Curve: Be Yourself

Being at home this year has allowed me to reconnect with the group of friends I had in high school. Not that we ever stopped talking to each other, but with me being away at school, it was difficult for us to really be able to talk or see each other. I found my Senior yearbook while doing some house cleaning last weekend & came across what my best friend had written. I had forgotten all the crazy things we did that year because we were "seniors" and no one could tell us we couldn't. We were invincible...

I don't know what's happened in the last year and a half, but they all seemed to have changed. Not in a bad way. I mean, changing is all part of growing up. It's like they haven't stayed true to themselves. They've let the world come in and completely made them forget who they were and the things they stood for.

There's a lot of misconceptions out there about college. Movies glamorize it & make it seem like you aren't having the "ULTIMATE COLLEGE EXPERIENCE" if you aren't at a party every night, doing drugs, hooking up with some guy/girl...

I'm here to tell you that that's not what college is all about. If anything college is somewhere where you can be yourself and feel completely accepted. There are more people out there willing to accept your point of view/way of thinking with an open mind instead of just putting it down. Don't ever feel like you need to give into peer pressure to "fit in" at college. Some of the most interesting people I've had the pleasure of meeting are the ones who don't fit the mold.

I promise, if you just do a bit of searching, there is a club, organization, group...something out there will be just what you're looking for with people that you will instantly connect with. Don't be afraid to try something new or interesting either. If you have any interest in it at all, at least give it a try. Who knows you might just find a new hobby that you didn't even know you were interested in.

If you ever start feeling overwhelmed with college or just life in general...I don't have all the answers, but I'm sure I could find a logical answer somewhere.

You guys are awesome. No Duh! :P

♥ Jen

Genres of Music-Pop

Hey hey hey!! Hope all of you are having a fantastic weekend so far!! I'm glad the weekend finally came...this past week was incredibly hectic for me...who knew senior year would be so packed and crammed?

Anyway, I thought I'd continue talking to you guys about different genres of music. Today, I want to cover pop music, which also happens to be one of my favorites!! When I first started purchasing cd's, which was about the 4-5th grade (my first actual cd was Britney Spears, before then I had bought a cd that had several pop songs on it) and I've been addicted to pop music ever since!! To me, pop music is extremely catchy, and again, because I'm a dancer, it's also convenient to choreograph to it!

Pop music seems to be an incredibly popular genre these days...and there's many artists whose music falls into that category.

-Coldplay
-McFly
-Spice Girls
-Natasha Bedingfield
-Girls Aloud
-Sara Bareilles
-John Mayer
-Honor Society
-Jonas Brothers (you knew it was coming :P)
-Demi Lovato
-Miley Cyrus
-Vanessa Hudgens

Most Disney channel and Nickelodeon stars who also sing are considered to be included in the pop music genre. Also, some artists' music can be classified as more than one genre. For example, Jordin Sparks' music would probably be considered Pop and R&B, while some bands may be considered as both Pop & Rock.

And while speaking about pop music, of course, I can't forget artists like Britney Spears, Backstreet Boys, N'sync, and Westlife. Let's also not forget the King of Pop himself, Michael Jackson (RIP<3) I realize this blog is getting quite lengthy, but I'd like to quickly point out a couple of songs that I think you all should go check out at www.youtube.com or at iTunes. :)

-Over You by Honor Society
-Falling Down by Selena Gomez & the Scene (Don't forget, Selena and the Scene's album Kiss and Tell is dropping September 29th...be sure to check it out!!
-Gift of a Friend by Demi Lovato
-Party in the USA by Miley Cyrus
-One Time by Justin Bieber
-She Wolf by Shakira
-Obsessed by Mariah Carey

That's just a handful!! If you would like new song/artist suggestions in any music genre, please feel free to send me a Twitter DM or an @reply to @Lalalabanya.

That's all for today!! Talk to you all next week! :)

-Labanya

Movie Suggestion: Love Happens

Jennifer Aniston's new movie comes out TOMORROW!

I'm super excited for this movie. It looks excruciatingly cute. Ahh, just thinking about the sweetness is making my teeth hurt.

I can't wait to see Jen in something new. She's such a phenomenal actress, but I haven't seen her on the big screen in quite a while. And to be teamed up with Aaron Eckhart? Can you say match made in heaven!?

Review for you next week!