Wednesday, August 26, 2009 7:53 PM

To Whom It May Concern:

I’m due for both my July 2009 and August 2009 Letters From the Editor.  I’ll be doing a combo deal this time around.

  • So what went down in July?  Here are the highlights.
    • Reviewed Darci Monet’s Fusion in LTR (Long Term Review) feature here.
    • Featured regularly scheduled pop quizzes for Semantic Noise here and Lights Resolve here
    • Featured special pop quizzes around 2 local events –
      • Monster Girl here and Stephanie SALVO here for The All Austin All Handmade Bash.
      • Started the countdown of  5th Annual Premios Texas 2009 Artist pop quizzes – Bobby Pulido here and VALLEJO here.
    • Counted down MY TOP 10: Mike Jack Collabos in tribute to the King of Pop
  • And in August?
    • Continued the Premios Texas 2009 pop quizzes with Makano here and Anita Benner of Los Bad Apples here.
    • Posted the first of more to come of pics from the Red Carpet of the above event here.
    • Coolooloosh pop quiz here.  Second August pop quiz to post THIS FRIDAY. So stay tuned for that.
    • I’ m in the midst of MY TOP 10: 90s/00s Pop/R&B Divo Music Video Jump-Offs.   This is the twelfth countdown I’ve done so far!  So,  I decided to mirror my very first September 2008 countdown – MY TOP 10: 90s/00s Pop/R&B Diva Music Video Jump-Offs.  Hope you all enjoy it 
  • One Year Anniversary Mixer (09.18.09 in Austin)
    • Most importantly, popolio.com will be one year old next month and we’re throwing an informal low-key event in our own honor. 
    • It’s open and free, but I ask that you RSVP, so that I can get a headcount.   Come celebrate with us. 
    • Check out the flyer here and read the press release here.
  • Mandrake Society Radio Podcast Fifth Season Event  (09.19.09 in Dallas)
    • In conjunction we’ll be celebrating the fifth season of our brother blog, MandrakeSocietyRadio.com, the very next day in Dallas.
    • See that post here.  

This will be a Friday and Saturday evening.  So, I dare you to come out to both events and party with us.  It’s doable.  Hope to see you there.  Can’t wait.

8:18 PM

peace, love & all that jazz

freddie beat
popolio creator/editor

jj_RS

Courtesy of Google Search

If Michael’s death has done anything for Janet, it seems it has inspired her.  She’s keeping her swagger on and her hustle going.  She blogged and bulletined the following message on her official MySpace Page yesterday about her new updated website:

Hey you guys,
Welcome, explore,
Thank you for all the love

http://www.janetjackson.com

It contains a news item about her return to her previous Tyler Perry role in the sequel to Why Did I Get Married?  Guess that answers one of the questions I posed here.  Check it out!

Last Day! To Vote popolio.com “Best Local Blog”  in The Austin Chronicle’s 2009 Best Of poll here.
* * *mj_jj
July 21, 2009 UPDATE:  So, it is being reported that Janet has, indeed, broken up with Jermaine Dupri.  It has also been reported that Janet has returned to work to the set of Why Did I Get Married Too?  I read that Tyler Perry stated he was willing to wait for her no matter how long it would have taken.  Wonder how much truth there is to that.  Lastly, there is internet buzz that Janet is going to open Michael’s first scheduled London O2 date with special guests including Justin Timberlake.  Now, won’t that be interesting?


Originally posted June 29, 2009

* * *
So, as the Janet question looms — How will the death of Michael Jackson affect Janet Jackson?  They are two of the youngest Jacksons, and, arguably, Janet was the closest to him.   We know they’re the two most successful Jacksons, so why wouldn’t there be a different kind of kinship there?  She gave a gracious speech at the 2009 BET Awards last night regarding her brother’s death.  The award show itself was dedicated in its entirety to paying tribute to the King of Pop.

Recent internet buzz states Ms. J recently broke up with Jermaine Dupri.  Seems like days before the death.  Now, if this is even true, will she run back to his arms for some consolation?  People have been known to get back together in times of tragedy.  And if the love is there and real, he will be there to support her, regardless.  Those are my two cents on that matter.

Next, production on Why Did I Get Married Too? started last week.  Tyler Perry wanted all the original cast to return.  She was on the set in Atlanta, I believe, and flew to L.A. once the news hit.  Will she return to the production?  Will they halt production for now and postpone it a bit?  Or will Janet’s character end up being played by another actress?

And, lastly, the music.  Word on the cyber-street is that Janet was hooking back up with her long-time collaborators Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis and in the early stages of some new music-making.  Remember, they were absent from the last album, Discipline.  And, I still don’t know who’s genius call that was.  In most cases, I’m of the Madonna philosophy of moving on to new producers and changing up your sound.  In Janet’s case that doesn’t seem to work.  And the formula with Jam and Lewis is tried and true, so if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.  From what I read about the break-up, Janet allegedely wasn’t happy with Dupri’s running of her career.

So, how will this transform the music?  Will there be some tribute songs?  Will the whole project become a tribute album? And, I wonder what other artists will do in the form of tribute songs and projects.  There are already some out there.

And really, really lastly, I read there maybe be a Jackson Reunion/Michael Jackson Tribute Tour with Janet as the headliner with her other brothers.  Now, I would pay to see this and I just saw Janet for the first time in her Rock Witchu Tour last year.  Now, if she did this, would she have to drop out of the movie?  Or could she do the movie and then start working on this?

Just more questions than answers, really.  As a fan, my heart goes out to her.  I hope she will be able to mourn properly and for an appropriate amount of time, but at the same time be able to keep up with everything, too.   I think sometimes it’s good for people get back into some work, so they don’t get too lost in the grief.  Time will tell.  Michael, thank you and Rest In Peace.  Janet, hang in there and I offer my sincerest and deepest condolences to you and your family.

I’m kicking off MY TOP 10 tribute to the King of Pop.  I wanted to do something a little different.  We all know the videos and we all know the good ones, so I thought I’d focus on his duets.  But, I’m going to make it a 2-in-1 MY TOP 10.  The BONUS videos will function as a second countdown and will feature the regular Michael Jackson videos.  Hope you enjoy our stroll down MJ memory lane.

mj11. Janet Jackson “Scream”
So, of course, Janet with Michael had to be Number 1.  I’ve stated time and time again that I am a Janet fan.  Fanaticism aside, this really is a good song and video, though.   And, Michael and Janet are the 2 biggest Jacksons.  Janet was smart about this, too.  Apparently, Michael had asked to duet with her prior to this, but Janet didn’t want to do anything with him until she felt she had established herself on her own two feet.  She didn’t want anyone to think she was riding on Michael’s coattails or the Jackson name.  And the timing of this release was at a good time in both their careers.  This single was for his greatest/new hits package, HIStory:  Past, Present, and Future, Book I and garnered 11 MTV VMA nominations — the most ever at the time.  Additionally, with a $7 million price tag, it is still the most expensive video ever made.  

***BONUS*** Michael Jackson “Billie Jean” (Motown 25 performance)
So, the Motown 25 performance is one of those that’s often talked about and especially now that MJ has passed.  It is where he first unveiled the moonwalk.  Hope you enjoyed this moonwalk down Michael Jackson memory lane.  Enjoy.

 

Vote popolio.com “Best Local Blog”  in The Austin Chronicle’s 2009 Best Of poll here.
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I’m kicking off MY TOP 10 tribute to the King of Pop.  I wanted to do something a little different.  We all know the videos and we all know the good ones, so I thought I’d focus on his duets.  But, I’m going to make it a 2-in-1 MY TOP 10.  The BONUS videos will function as a second countdown and will feature the regular Michael Jackson videos.  Hope you enjoy our stroll down MJ memory lane.

mj22. Paul McCartney “Say Say Say”
I wanted to feature “The Girl Is Mine” from Thriller, but I couldn’t find an official video for it.  All this time I thought “The Girl Is Mine”  was another hit from Thriller, but its Wikipedia page says differently.  But, we all know how credible Wikipedia is. (Though I do reference it often. Factual stuff seems more credible than opinion-based statements.)  It does mention that it was a hit on the charts, so for that to happen it had to have had a nice cross-section of the general, mainstream audience.  Michael Jackson and a Beatle?  I think that’s pretty major, so that’s why this is Number 2.  “Say Say Say” came out after “The Girl Is Mine,” but had been produced prior.  It is from McCartney’s Pipes of Peace and was at Number 1 hit for 7 weeks on Billboard Hot 100.

**BONUS*** Michael Jackson “Smooth Criminal”
From Bad, this is one of my personal MJ favorites, musically and visually.  I have no idea what I’m going to end with tomorrow for the BONUS video.   Guess it will be a surprise for us both. Until then, enjoy “Smooth Criminal.”

I’m kicking off MY TOP 10 tribute to the King of Pop.  I wanted to do something a little different.  We all know the videos and we all know the good ones, so I thought I’d focus on his duets.  But, I’m going to make it a 2-in-1 MY TOP 10.  The BONUS videos will function as a second countdown and will feature the regular Michael Jackson videos.  Hope you enjoy our stroll down MJ memory lane.

mj33. Diana Ross “Ease On Down The Road”
This is the classic song from The Wiz by Diana Ross and Michael Jackson, who played Dorothy and The Scarecrow, respectively.  The Wiz is a musical reinteripretation of The Wizard of Oz  through a Black urban lens and this song is in the feature film version of the musical.  The song comes from the musical and became a hit for Ms. Ross and MJ.  Like other songs on this countdown, it was nominated for a Best R&B performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal Grammy Award.

***BONUS*** Michael Jackson “Human Nature”
No official video for “Human Nature” from Thriller.  So, here’s a live performance version.  The first sweet song along the lines of “Man in the Mirror.”  Sort of.

Vote popolio.com “Best Local Blog”  in The Austin Chronicle’s 2009 Best Of poll here.
* * *
I’m kicking off MY TOP 10 tribute to the King of Pop.  I wanted to do something a little different.  We all know the videos and we all know the good ones, so I thought I’d focus on his duets.  But, I’m going to make it a 2-in-1 MY TOP 10.  The BONUS videos will function as a second countdown and will feature the regular Michael Jackson videos.  Hope you enjoy our stroll down MJ memory lane.

mj44.  Jermaine Jackson “Tell Me I’m Not Dreamin’ (Too Good to Be True)”
This song features Michael and Jermaine and is from Jermaine’s self-titled 1984 album.   A B-Side that was never an official release (so, no official video, either) because of issues between the brothers’ record companies, it did get a lot of air and club play.  It was a Number 1 Billboard Dance Club Play hit for three weeks and also garnered a Grammy Nomination for Best R&B Performance for a Duo or Group with Vocal.

 

***BONUS*** Michael Jackson “Man in the Mirror”
This song from Bad seems to have become the King of Pop’s unofficial chosen theme post-death.  It does make a strong statement.  An aspirational song and video, so no wonder.  Enjoy.

I’m kicking off MY TOP 10 tribute to the King of Pop.  I wanted to do something a little different.  We all know the videos and we all know the good ones, so I thought I’d focus on his duets.  But, I’m going to make it a 2-in-1 MY TOP 10.  The BONUS videos will function as a second countdown and will feature the regular Michael Jackson videos.  Hope you enjoy our stroll down MJ memory lane.

mj55. Eddie Murphy ”Whatzupwitu”
Eddie Murphy was never quite able to parlay his comedy success into a music career, though you have to give him credit for trying.  He released more than one album of music.  This song in particular is hardly considered a hit.  Though some may think it a strange pairing (and video), I think it’s an interesting pairing of two legends of different areas.  And, I, personally, like the track.  This is from Eddie Murphy’s third and final music album, Love’s Alright.

***BONUS*** Michael Jackson “Rock With You”
How about we pair “Whatzupwitu” with “Rock With You?”  Not a bad pairing, right? Well, sit back and enjoy on this day of the memorial.

I’m kicking off MY TOP 10 tribute to the King of Pop.  I wanted to do something a little different.  We all know the videos and we all know the good ones, so I thought I’d focus on his duets.  But, I’m going to make it a 2-in-1 MY TOP 10.  The BONUS videos will function as a second countdown and will feature the regular Michael Jackson videos.  Hope you enjoy our stroll down MJ memory lane.

mj66. Heavy D “Jam”
This is more of a feature or cameo than a true duet.  Heavy D provides a rap on the bridge of the song, but this isn’t an out of the ordinary guest appearance for a rapper especially at the time.  Heavy D first appeared on sister Janet’s remix of “Alright,” so he got to work with the two biggest Jacksons.  The video visually features a legend of another arena and another MJ  — Michael Jordan.  The video concept is that the two masters teach each other their crafts.  Kris Kross, who were hot at the time, also guest on the video, though they provide no vocals.

 

**BONUS*** Michael Jackson ”Remember the Time”
Both videos are from Dangerous tonight.   This one is a longer more elaborate video with fun guest appearances and memorable choregraphy that was often imitated, but never duplicated.   

  

Sunday, July 5, 2009 8:44 PM

To Whom It May Concern:

I’m long overdue for my June 2009 Letter from the Editor, but I still want to give it to you. I’m going to try bullets to expedite and address some things.

  • New opportunities — I’ve just been so busy with new opportunities associated with this blog that it’s been hard to keep up with the regular features. Haven’t quite figured out how to balance things as those opportunities grow. I do want to give a shout out to those who have reached out and collaborated with popolio here in Austin – Birds Barbershop, The Pachanga Latino Music Festival, and the GAT5 Summer Sizzle fashion show. The flow of it seems to be occurring in ebbs and flows, so, I guess I will have to deal with really busy peaks and when I have slower valleys, I can play catch-up.
  •  

  • Deadlines — I want to keep up with the deadlines I’ve set-up here at popolio. I’ve been thinking about it. And, I think with features that come from me — things such as MY TOP 10 and Single and Listening I can be a little more flexible and that’s fine. One MY TOP 10 a month and that could be any time throughout the month and two Single and Listenings a month, which could also fall at any point. Ideally, I’d want to spread them out throughout the month. Now, Tuesday Tease is timely, so, that has to happen weekly. And, anything that deals with an artist that an artist might be waiting on, regarding those features, I want to work on tighter scheduling. pop quizzes have been pretty much every other Friday. New feature Questions for has been harder to keep up with. I’m always in need of content. So, any artists and/or their representatives out there who want to be featured reach out to me.
  •  

  • Michael Jackson’s death — This is the biggest story of June. It’s still unwinding as I type this. I’ve posted a few posts regarding the King of Pop. And, I’m in the middle of a MY TOP 10 dedicated to him as we speak. So, check out those posts and this month’s MY TOP 10.
  •  

  • The Austin Chronicle’s 2009 Best Of Poll – I’ve tossed my hat in the ring to be voted as “Best Local Blog” in The Chronicle’s annual poll. They’re actually celebrating 20 years of Best Of. So, Happy Birthday to them. I’m still growing the blog and trying to get the word out, but I don’t think I have anything to lose by mounting this campaign. I work hard and I think I write well and present a good blog. I’m about not trying to do what everyone else is doing and doing my own thing. And, if you do similar things because you can’t reinvent the wheel every single time, at least you try to give it your own, different angle. And, I’m focused on entertainment not gossip or sensationalism and original content, which is evident by our interviews with local, national, and international artists as well as our pics of local events. So, vote for us in the poll’s Media Section.

9:12 PM

peace, love & all that jazz

Freddie Rodriguez aka freddie beat
popolio creator/editor

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