Tidbits

-According to the wonderful Popjustice.com, Danish wonder band, Alphabeat will have a new album and single out in Sept. The single is called The Spell, and from what Popjustice says about the song, it sounds like a winner.

-Leighton Meester has recorded a song with RedOne!! Yay! According to her twitter, it's called What is Love. Please be a banger.

-Kesha's debut single TiK ToK will go to radio in September. Fingers crossed it does well. It's raucously delightful.

-Apparently Dizzee Rascal's latest beast of a summer jam, Holiday, was originally intended for The Saturdays to record according to the song's writer, pop maven Calvin Harris. Holiday would have been a completely different song with The Saturdays doing it. Dizzee has made it his own. Very interesting.

-Last night, on the finale of TV's best competition show, So You Think You Can Dance, bubbly gal Jeanine took the title of America's favorite dancer. I'm glad she won, but I was pulling for Kayla. Kayla came alive with every number she did. Jeanine is very worthy though. Guest judge Debbie Allen (she is hilarious) picked the group number the top 16 did to Calle Ocho by Pitbull as one of her favorite routines of the season. It's understandable why: the song is hot, the beat is hot, and the routine is smoking especially the part with the girls dancing on the tables, kicking the water around. Spicy!

Music Update!

-Kings of Leon have shot to the number 2 position on the US iTunes chart with the anthemic Use Somebody. Took long enough. Congrats, boys!

-Good Girls Go Bad, the collaboration between Cobra Starship and Gossip Gal Leighton Meester is rising in the chart, standing at number 5 on iTunes. Very exciting!

-Across the pond, JLS are still topping the UK iTunes with their debut Beat Again and Kanye West's new protege (even though he's been around in England for awhile) Mr Hudson's newest single, Supernova, featuring Mr. West is at the number 2 position. Very impressive debut for that song!

All around congratulations are in order.

XOXO

Lots of Gossip Girl and Leighton news today:

The cast were back in New York on Monday to start filming the third season! Here are some photos of the gang looking wonderful as usual.

Apparently, Hilary Duff will be joining the cast in October. She will be playing a Hollywood actress who comes to New York for the regular university lifestyle. She ends up being roommates at NYU with Vanessa. This should be very interesting. Joanna Garcia of the cancelled Privileged will also show up for a few episodes this season to play Nate's girlfriend. This all sounds promising and Blair and Georgina will be roommates!!

Now in music world, the music video for Leighton and Cobra Starship's single Good Girls Go Bad arrived the other day. It's a decent video, nothing new. The lead singer of Cobra Starship does a little too much hand movement for me. It looks like he's going to come through my computer screen. Leighton is all fierceness though. I love the shot at the end where you see the lead singer on the ground looking up at Leighton's orange high heels as she walks by. The end is great.

Song of the Day

Actress and now singer extraordinaire, Leighton Meester, contributed her vocals to a track called Birthday by a Miami duo named Awesome New Republic. Leighton's vocal performance here is stronger than the one in Good Girls Go Bad. She's a very convincing "come hither", flirty singer. This song is great with or without Leighton though (the version with just Awesome New Republic is really good as well). The chorus is a joyous peak of falsetto, and the verses have driving and guttural guitar. They also mention kinetic energy which is fantastic. Lots of nasty fun! Absolutely infectious!

I ADORE LEIGHTON MEESTER

Leighton Meester, one of my favorite young actresses at the moment, has signed a record deal and is making an electro-pop album to be released this fall. Hell to the yes! She is featured on the new Cobra Starship song, Good Girls Go Bad. Cobra Starship are emo-pop-rock and their songs have always been a tad too heavy for me, but this bubbly, super fun ditty with Leighton is pop to the core. It's extremely catchy and there's a sassy clap and stomp part in the middle. I first I questioned Leighton's vocal chops. They are somewhat reminiscent of the Tiz's. Leighton sings her verse well though. She's somewhat convincing. I can't wait for the video. It involves Leighton running a speak easy with a deli as the front for it. Sounds fantastic. What a great song to blast!



Also, as a side note, the above photo is of Leighton (in Louis Vuitton) at the Costume Institute Gala in New York a few weeks ago. There has been much debate over this outfit. Entertainment Weekly gave it an "F", but I think it is absolutely fierce and kooky. I love the everything about the look: the pattern, the orange and the bows. Leighton be the shiz.

Rock It, Leighton!

Leighton Meester, Blair Waldorf on Gossip Girl, attends a party for Gotham magazine for which she is this month's cover girl. She attended with her boyfriend, Sebastian Stan, who played the sinister Carter on Girl last season (I loved him.) Also, he's Romanian. I'm so in to that. Here's Leighton with her co-star Connor Paulo too. He sure looks happy. They need to get him a new fella on the show. Leighton, I love you! Check out those pumps!