Album Review: The Pinkprint

Nicki Minaj’s third album, The Pinkprint, came out earlier this week, and we listened to the whole thing so you don’t have to. The deluxe version is 22 fucking songs, and it’s a pretty mixed bag. There are like half a dozen amazing songs, a bunch that are pretty decent, and a few that are just rough. The good news is there’s way less pop bullshit than on her last two albums, and her rapping is just generally on point. The volume def needs to be turned up, because if you can’t hear the beats there’s really no point. If you really like Nicki, listen to the whole thing. If you just need some new twerking music this holiday season, keep reading, because these are the six best songs from The Pinkprint:

Feeling Myself (feat. Beyoncé)

This leaked last week, but it’s still just as glorious.  I listened to this one like three times in a row and was legit dancing in my chair. I’m praying that Bey and Nicki pull a Watch the Throne and make a whole album together, but until then I’m just going to put this on repeat. Also, I am very intimidated by Nicki Minaj.

 

Only (feat. Chris Brown, Drake, and Lil Wayne)

IDGAF about Chris Brown, but the rest of this song is pretty great. Nicki fucking kills her verse, and everyone loves #97 Lil Wayne. Also Drake the Jew (happy fucking Chanukah) makes an appearance. This song can stay.

 

 

Anaconda

I know a lot of people are probably tired of this one, but it’s still so fun. You know it’s coming, and it’s still as magnificent as when you first heard it. It might not be your favorite song on the album, but don’t try to tell me it’s never been stuck in your head.

 

 

Bed of Lies (feat. Skylar Grey)

If you haven’t heard the new single yet, it’s basically a better version of Pills N Potions.  Nicki gets emotional without being boring, and the chorus is pretty catchy. 

 

 

Shanghai

This is where Nicki really kills the club.  The beat is vicious.  I feel like I’m being hunted by Nicki, and tbh I kind of want to get caught. The only issue is that you have to listen for an hour to get to this point on the album.

 

Truffle Butter (feat. Drake & Lil Wayne)

Fucking A+. I have no clue why this is a bonus track, but I was basically wall twerking by the fourth time I listened to it.  If you only listen to one song from the album, make it this one. The beat is so fucking catchy, and Drake and Wayne are back for a second great time.

Read more: http://www.betcheslovethis.com/article/album-review-the-pinkprint

Album Review: The Pinkprint

album, Entertainment, music, Nicki Minaj, review

MTV Award Nominees See Spike in Sales, Social Reach

If you’re a skeptic who thinks MTV lost its focus on the musical artists, you might want to think again. Thanks to multi-platform voting for the network’s upcoming Video Music Awards, artists are seeing noticeable spikes in both their sales and their social fan bases.

MTV opened mobile and online voting last Tuesday when the network initially announced the nominees and first performers. In an effort to leverage the network’s digital following, MTV opted to not have a television nomination special and build buzz exclusively in the digital sphere. The switch proved effective, particularly for artists nominated in a new category, Best Electronic Dance Music Video.

Among the nominees is Avicii, who gained colossal fandom for his mainstream monster hit, “Le7els.” The song has been sampled ad nauseam, and the Swedish DJ hasn’t been shy about asking fans (and fellow artists) to pick a new track. Last month, he went so far as to post this video to his YouTube channel, complete with a list of virtually every other song the artist has made.

Clearly, the fans still can’t get enough. Following the nomination of the “Le7els” video in the EDM category, Avicii gained 100,000 new Facebook fans and 15,000 new Twitter followers. Fellow nominees in the category, Duck Sauce and Skrillex both saw increases across social platforms as well.

While we all wish we could compensate artists for their work by following them on Twitter, that just isn’t exactly the case. Thankfully, social counts aren’t the only figures on the upswing; Best Electronic Dance Music Video nominee Calvin Harris saw an approximate 30% sales bump for his nominated track, “Feel So Close.”

Among the nominees for Best Rock Video, Imagine Dragons saw sales for its EP Continued Silence rocket from #80 to #58, a 12% increase on Nielsen Soundscan. At time of writing, the EP held the #16 spot on the iTunes Main Album Chart and the #6 spot among iTunes Alternative Albums.

Voting will continue through Aug. 26 for all categories except for Best New Artist, which will remain open until Sept. 6. Artists can only hope as the voting continues, the spikes in buzz and profits will continue as well.

The VMAs will air on Sept. 6 at 8/7c on MTV. Hosted by comedian Kevin Hart, the show will include performances from boy-band sensation One Direction and 14-time Grammy winner Alicia Keys, who will debut a new song at the awards show. Until then, you can continue voting online at VMA.MTV.com or on mobile web at M.MTV.com. Verizon subscribers can vote on mobile by texting VMA to 22444.

Read more: http://mashable.com/2012/08/09/mtv-vma-social-sales/

MTV Award Nominees See Spike in Sales, Social Reach

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