Mariah Carey’s ‘Me. I Am Mariah… The Elusive Chanteuse’: Review Revue

Five years after the release of her last album, Memoirs Of An Imperfect Angel, pop queen Mariah Carey has returned with new LP. And ever since the superstar revealed her album’s slightly oddball title, the emergence of Me. I am Mariah... the Elusive Chanteuse has been accompanied by just a slight sense of… huh? Straying away from her usual synthy, sparkly numbers, Mimi is trying out a more laidback R&B approach this time around, which fans are finding either pleasantly surprising or a bit baffling.

Our own Mike Wass helps weather some of the confusion, explaining, "It's a concept album of sorts, a loving stroll through the history of R&B - from the Motown era to the '90s, with detours through disco and early hip-hop... There's little instant gratification but, if you're patient, the songs become richer and deeper with each listen."

But, what does the rest of the Web have to say about it? Check it out below.

Mariah's single covers Through The years

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:: The Daily Beast felt a little underwhelmed by the album, stating "The beginning echoes the starts of those sultry Carey torch songs of the old days, but it's just foreplay that doesn't go anywhere. Those orgasmic key changes that defined Carey's classic ballads, the soft belting that builds and builds until there's nothing left for Carey to do but wail in vocal ecstasy, they're nowhere to be found."

:: The Boston Globe agrees with the Daily Beast, noting that "what is unfortunately not elusive on the album are a clutch of interchangeable slow-to-midtempo tunes long on pulsating atmosphere - several with distractingly fidgety rhythmic tracks - but short on melody or verve."

:: New York Daily News, on the other hand, gave the disc a 4/5, raving, "Contrary to its title, the new album may be Carey’s least elusive work. Rarely has she made her talent more clear."

:: Newsdaygave the album an "A-," simply stating, "Once again, Mariah proves she thrives on drama."

:: Digital Spy gives the album 3.5 stars. "Me. I Am Mariah... The Elusive Chanteuse is a finely-poised balance between the two; touching moments of personal insight mixed with peaks of glittering over-the-top pop."

:: Billboard thinks that Mimi is staying a bit on the safe side with this LP: "The usual, more or less. Musically, it's her typical mix of pop-classicist balladry and hip-hop-tinged summer jamming, and if Carey doesn’t exactly go strutting into new territory, it's because she knows most people like her right where she is."

:: The Los Angeles Times agrees with Billboard: "No one doubts Carey’s ability as a belter, but now she’s cut a perfectly modest, sonically contemporary album without any need to show off her glass-shattering range."

Enough of these guys - what are your own thoughts on Mimi’s latest record? Let us know below!

Get an eyeful of even more pop music coverage, from artist interviews to exclusive performances, on Idolator's YouTube channel.

Kimye’s ‘Vogue’ Cover Is A Mega-Seller: Morning Mix

:: A lot of people turned up their nose at Kim Kardashian and Kanye West landing on the cover of Vogue but the issue is on pace to shift more copies than previous best-selling covers by Beyonce and Michelle Obama. Take that, haters! [NY Mag]

:: Pharrell‘s hat is a cultural phenomenon. (I mean, it even has its own Twitter account!) And now the super producer/“Happy” hitmaker has another outrageous piece of headgear in his collection thanks to Ellen Degeneres. [Hip Hop N More]

:: This is not a good look for 50 Cent. The MC has been ordered to pay Sleek Audio $16 million for stealing their headphone design and then releasing the product with another manufacturer. [Page Six]

:: The world is obsessed with Michelle Williams embarrassing moments. The diva revealed in a recent interview that spilling a drink on a woman during a Sting concert makes her cringe the most particularly because she ruined the lady’s purse. [OK!]

After the jump, find out what music you can catch on TV today.

:: Live With Kelly & Michael (syndicated) - R5
:: The Arsenio Hall Show (syndicated) - Martina McBride
:: The Ellen Degeneres Show (syndicated) - Miranda Lambert
:: The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon (NBC) - Kiss

Lady Gaga’s ‘ARTPOP’: Review Revue

Does Mother Monster's Latest Have That 'Pop'?

Lady Gaga‘s third album ARTPOP has arrived, and we’ve declared it in our own review to be “her most cohesive work to-date,” adding that it’s “here that she finally cements her ‘sound’.” Other critics find the record to be either smart, a challenge, all over the place or, in some instances, a complete mess. We’ve gathered up a sampling of what The Internet is saying about Mother Monster’s new LP below. Give it a lookover, then let us know your own thoughts on ARTPOP!

lady gaga looks frightful in London

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:: The Daily Beast states that “ARTPOPis not a bad album. There are smatterings of genius on it, even, though moments of great never morph into songs of greatness,” while later adding that it “is ‘art’ in every way: polarizing, indulgent, and, as is often the case, raises the question, ‘What's the point?’”

:: Buzzfeed feels the LP lives up to its title: “It remains to be seen whether or not this album will be a major commercial success on par with her previous records, but the album is proof that Gaga hasn't become out of touch with her best instincts as a pop musician. ARTPOP is interesting in that it's somehow both deeply weird and conventional at the same time.”

:: Consequence Of Sound finds the album to be faulty: “Her ostentatious style, culled from MoMA art pieces and Madonna, Brooklyn drag fashion and Bowie, no longer has the shock-and-awe power it once did, and so her equally ostentatious musical style, influenced by many of those same factors, suffers from the same problem. On ARTPOP, Gaga lacks forward momentum in the same way she did on Born This Way.”

:: USA Today is on the fence: “One can easily imagine the songs as a sturdy vehicle for her delightfully over-the-top stage shows, and in small doses, they’ll fuel the Little Monsters on the dance floor. But given the scarcity of sing-along choruses, the rhythmic pounding and the absence of nuance in her powerhouse voice, the overall effect is exhausting if you’re listening to the album all the way through. Even the lone ballad, ‘Dope’, is too much of a slog to provide much relief.”

lady gaga strips down for her 'artpop' pics

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:: The Backlot praises Gaga’s unwavering style, even if, in their opinion, it’s holding her back at this point: “Along with her funny and obnoxious gall, self-awareness has always separated Gaga from contemporaries like Beyonce, Rihanna, and Katy Perry, unerringly safe ciphers who've spent the past five years emerging with state-of-the-art singles and throwaway sentiments at precisely the right radio moment. As those vocalists change up their game when trends demand it, Lady Gaga is still brandishing her mic like a disco stick and demanding pop radio adapt to her… And yet, that's why her new album ARTPOPisn't as fascinating as it could be: Though the 15-track disc has triumphs and follies aplenty, they're mostly the same triumphs and follies from her previous three albums, only now they're crunching and thudding harder in ARTPOP's dizzying, somewhat unfounded aggression.”

:: Says Metro, “Gaga remains a pop icon who prompts frequent comparisons to other names; the same was arguably never true of Madonna. The Euro riffs of ‘Venus’ recall 1990s camp connoisseurs Army Of Lovers; the couture-grotesque of ‘Donatella’ feels like an arch retread of Bowie or RuPaul; the 'don't want your money, want your love' refrain of ‘Jewels N' Drugs’ even weirdly evokes Transvision Vamp. Sometimes, you suspect the same fabulous effect could be achieved with a lot less money.”

:: The Chicago Tribune is also lukewarm on ARTPOP: “For all that firepower, the music is catchy but tame - she’s cozying up to chart-topping formulas rather than disrupting them. The flamenco guitar and noir-movie atmospherics of ‘Aura,’ the anthemic Meat Loaf-isms of ‘Gypsy,’ the Philly soul of ‘Fashion!’ and the jittery synths of ‘Applause’ offer glimpses of the stylistic sprawl Gaga had in mind. But there’s way too much that doesn’t move the dial beyond its well-defined box…”

:: SPIN notes, “‘Applause,’ the charging, atonal ode to being onstage and basking in her fans’ adulation, closes out this sprawling, seemingly flawed-out-of-necessity record. As a final statement, ‘Love me, because I love you’ certainly transcends both art and pop; she remains singularly compelling and lovable as a celebrity, even if her records don’t always match up to her outsized persona. Even at their worst, they only prove that the art is sometimes unworthy of the artist.”

:: Finally, Muumuse sums it all up with this: “In a year when Lady Gaga's fellow heavyweights didn't really seem to try very much at all - when Beyonc inked a $50 million deal with Pepsi to go on a tour to promote nothing in particular and tease snippets of songs in H&M commercials that no one can buy on iTunes, when Britney landed in a helicopter in the middle of the desert for no reason to announce a Vegas residency that she may or may not even want to do, and when Katy Perry released an inoffensive collection of Teenage Dream B-sides for 14-year-olds - pop music's greatest try-hard gave us the year's most fabulously over-the-top shitshow that absolutely deserves your applause.”

Let us know your own thoughts on ARTPOP below, and get an eyeful of even more pop music coverage, from artist interviews to exclusive performances, on Idolator's YouTube channel.

‘The Chronic’ Turns 20: Big Boi Reflects On Dr. Dre’s Masterpiece

Big Boi's 'Chronic' Chronicles

It’s impossible to describe the particular sound of Outkast (or Big Boi on his two solo albums) without somehow employing the word “funk.” Hip-hop’s use of bouncy beats is a given at this point, but it was Dr. Dre who first married gritty rhymes and such glossy production, with the G-funk of his 1992 classic The Chronic. Dre’s solo debut proved gangsta rap could be fun, that rappers could make party songs without losing street cred - and the genre never looked back.

That influence is certainly heard on Sir Lucious Left Foot’s latest effort Vicious Lies And Dangerous Rumors. So we asked Big Boi how The Chronic impacted him, ahead of that album’s 20th anniversary tomorrow (December 15). Watch it up top.

What’s your favorite memory of The Chronic? Let us know in the comments below, or on Facebook and Twitter.

‘The Voice’: No Saves Left For The Final 12

Can't Take Our Eyes Off Of Dez

In yet another Season 3 twist on The Voice, there is no longer a rule guaranteeing each coach a contestant in the finals. Starting now, America can vote anyone off - no saves or exceptions…unless, of course, they roll out another rule change. Could this mean that Cee Lo Green, Christina Aguilera, Blake Shelton or Adam Levine might find themselves in their oversized red chairs without a team to coach within a couple of weeks?

You know it! Get ready…this could get deliciously awkward. With no saves and no chance for X Factor-esque callbacks, it’s time for the final 12 to take the stage.

Team Blake - Michaela Paige
Michaela Paige slicks down her signature mohawk, dons a mini-hat (perhaps borrowed from Christina's Season 2 wardrobe) and wails out Pink‘s “(Blow Me) One Last Kiss.” We're consistently surprised that such a powerhouse voice belongs to a 16-year-old. She’s got the energy to jump around stage without losing her breath, and owns the crowd like a pro. She’s totally assured up there, and knows exactly who she is as a performer. The performance garnered high praise from Christina - “You’ve become one of my favorites in this competition” - and you know she just hates giving compliments to any non-Team Xtina members.

Team Christina - Dez Duron
Oh Dez, you are still so pretty, and Christina still has a crush on you. “I like everything you’re doing, Dez” she coos in rehearsals, which suggests that he might not be receiving the best constructive criticism from his coach. To his credit, Dez picks a song that makes the ladies swoon for more than just his looks. His rendition of “Can’t Take My Eyes Off You” by Lauryn Hill (or Frankie Valli - depending on which coach you’re asking) - is smooth and jazzy, and the best we’ve heard from Dez thus far. Christina sings along throughout, and Cee Lo gushes, “I thought that performance was impeccable…you’ve got so much natural sex appeal.” No argument there.

Team Christina - Adrianna Louise
Adrianna goes a little bit country - and a lot sex pot - with her performance of Carrie Underwood‘s “Good Girls.” It's not her best. Adrianna puts a lot of focus on sexing up the stage, but overall she is shaky, pitchy and hard to watch. At the end of her song, she gets up in Adam’s face coyly (honey, he doesn’t have a save for you), and it’s uncomfortable for everyone subjected to the sight. No one has anything terribly positive to say, and even Christina just pleads with America to vote for Adrianna because, “It’s really hard, you guys!”

Team Cee Lo - Cody Belew
Cody gets more likable every week. He performs Tina Turner‘s “The Best,” and does it while wearing what appears to be a woman's pantsuit. But you know what? He owns it. He works the crowd, his voice is strong, and he shoulder-shimmies his way into our hearts. You can tell the performance is good because Christina delivers a backhanded compliment to divert the attention back to her team. Cee Lo puts it best when he tells Cody, “You remind us that this is still fun.”

Team Adam - Amanda Brown
Not to get all “Glory Days,” but remember last week when Amanda Brown performed Aerosmith‘s “Dream On” and it was the best performance we've seen on The Voice ever? Yeah - that doesn’t happen with her take of Florence + The Machine‘s “Spectrum.” Some genius decided that the typically energetic performer should be constrained to a small platform, and the whole thing feels hesitant, a bit flat and uninspired. Amanda’s future on the show will likely come down to whether the electricity from last week overshadows this week’s bummer. Adam still believes that she could be a frontrunner to win, but her advancement to the next round is in jeopardy.

Team Adam - Bryan Keith
Bryan, so help us, if you don’t take off that damn fedora next week, we’re going to have to drop in Mission Impossible-style when you’re on stage next week and remove it ourselves. And you probably will be on stage next week, because headwear aside, your performance is flawless. Bryan does Amy Winehouse‘s “Back to Black,” and his Sinatra-with-a-rasp is a crowd-pleaser. Adam notes, “You had that breakout thing just happen,” and we can't help but agree. But seriously, dude, even if you’ve got a massive bald spot, it’s time to share it with the world.

Team Blake - Cassadee Pope
Before Cassadee performs Kelly Clarkson‘s “Behind These Hazel Eyes,” she all but jumps for joy when she hits a high note during rehearsals. This does not inspire too much confidence. We find ourselves on bated breath when she approaches the high notes in her actual performance, but thankfully, she nails them. The only thing we’ll call her on is that she wears her guitar like an accessory, which won’t win anyone over. Oh, except Cee Lo, who praises her, saying “Hot chicks with guitars. I’m in heaven.”

Team Cee Lo - Trevin Hunt
After last week’s show, we were confident we hit our maximum love threshold with Trevin. Then he goes and sings “When A Man Loves a Woman” - and dedicates it to HIS MOTHER, and our stone cold hearts just melt. Only this guy could pull off sing Michael Bolton for his mom without seeming disingenuous or cheesy. Trevin reveals that his Queens-based mother has suffered a great deal of loss after Hurricane Sandy, so this performance is particularly emotional and earns him a standing ovation from all four coaches. Cee Lo tells him, “I believe that you are an angel of some sort.” We believe that Trevin must advance to the next round.

Team Adam - Melanie Martinez
Before Melanie's performance, she answers the question that has been on all of our minds since she first sheepishly sauntered on the stage of The Voice: why is your hair that way? Now that we have the answer (“I actually got inspired by Cruella De Vil”), any intrigue that once surrounded the contestant is gone. We said it last week and shall repeat again: her performances aren’t blowing anyone out of the water. She gives us Young the Giant‘s “Cough Syrup” this week, and it's fine - better than last week - but doesn't quite elevate her from quirky coffee shop singer to chart-topping material.

Team Cee Lo - Nicholas David
We have a growing affection for Cee Lo's ginger-bearded team member, who graciously rolls with any advice that the star throws his way. Though Nicholas wants to go bluesy piano on “Power of Love” by Huey Lewis, he takes Cee Lo’s advice and performs it big. Like, “full horn section, Vegas staircase entrance and massive lighting effects” big. Even amongst trumpets and visual effects, his voice is paramount, earning him compliments from all of the judges. Cee Lo even starts rambling off inspirational quotes (starting with “There’s no greater success than the realization of self,” and spiraling from there). Luckily, master time-keeper Carson Daly is there to cut him off before he starts quoting Tony Robbins, but you get the drift: Nicholas done good.

Team Christina - Sylvia Yacoub
Someone must have had a talk with Sylvia about playing a sympathy card to get America on her team. Break out the tissues: Sylvia had vocal nodules once, which inspired her to perform Celine Dion‘s “My Heart Will Go On” in remembrance of her own triumph over the malady. Or something. Anyway - the Titanic song choice is ill-advised, Christina's tip to go “more Beyonce-ish” is ill-advised and even though it’s technically fine, it's just so cheesy. She’s still the best performer on Team Christina, but she’s got to watch it with the song choice. America’s voting can sink her faster than, well, you know.

Team Blake - Terry McDermott
Alert the presses: Terry McDermott is performing a classic rock song. This time, he takes on another crowd-pleaser with Boston's “More Than a Feeling.” There is no denying his talent - we like Terry, and he’ll likely soar on to the next round. But when he does, we just ask for a twist. Maybe even something originating from, say, the ’90s. Terry’s got a genre-transcending voice, and we want to hear it do just that.

Results will be in tonight, when we’re guessing the contestants will be forced to suffer through the anxiety of hearing, “The next performer who America saved is…going to be revealed after another commercial for Revolution.”

Who had your vote after Monday's performances? Let us know below!

Election 2012: Which Candidate Has Better Taste In Music?

Presidential candidates Barack Obama and Mitt Romney have made public playlists (or, their respective media teams have, anyway) to prove that they’re just a coupl’a regular guys who need a good road trip soundtrack to keep them awake. But we all know these mixes are meticulously curated and scrubbed of “unrelatable” songs: while VP nominee Paul Ryan can admit a fondness for Rage Against The Machine, Obama and Romney’s spin doctors would’ve swapped out such an abrasive choice with, say, Spin Doctors.

The playlists depict a neutered version of the candidates’ listening realities, but the chosen songs reveal details about how each man wants to be perceived, and provide clues to their true musical leanings. So with that in mind, we’ve analyzed the two playlists to determine who has better taste in music. (Pressing political issues, people.) Read on to see if we’d rather rock out with Romney or Obama.

Here’s Obama’s 28-song campaign playlist (it has now grown to 41 tracks, but we’ll use the smaller, early version):

No Doubt - Different People
Earth Wind & Fire Experience feat. Al McKay Allstars - Got To Get You Into My Life (Live)
Booker T. & The MG’s - Green Onions
Wilco - I Got You
The Impressions - Keep On Pushing
Jennifer Hudson - Love You I Do
AgesandAges - No Nostalgia
Ledisi - Raise Up
Sugarland - Stand Up
Darius Rucker - This
Arcade Fire - We Used to Wait
Florence + The Machine - You’ve Got The Love
James Taylor - Your Smiling Face
REO Speedwagon - Roll With The Changes
Raphael Saadiq - Keep Marchin’
Noah And The Whale - Tonight’s The Kind Of Night
Zac Brown Band - Keep Me In Mind
Aretha Franklin - The Weight
U2 - Even Better Than The Real Thing
Dierks Bentley - Home
Sugarland - Everyday America
Darius Rucker - Learn To Live
Al Green - Let’s Stay Together
Electric Light Orchestra - Mr. Blue Sky
Montgomery Gentry - My Town
Ricky Martin - The Best Thing About Me Is You Feat. Joss Stone
Ray LaMontagne - You Are The Best Thing
Bruce Springsteen - We Take Care Of Our Own

To Show He’s “With It”: Arcade Fire, Florence + The Machine

To Show He Has Eclectic Taste: Wilco, ELO, Raphael Saadiq

Most Pandering Song: While Bruce’s latest lefty anthem could go here, we actually believe Obama listens to it. But a Ricky Martin message song? Not buying it, Mr. President.

Notably Absent: Rap. The president is an avowed fan of Jay-Z and Lil Wayne, but nary a scary rap song appears on his playlist. Not even positive, “conscious” rap from the ’90s like Arrested Development!

What It All Means: Starting off with a Tragic Kingdom deep track is a George W. Bush-like gut decision; it shows Obama isn’t just a front-runner latching onto hit singles. Perhaps the familiar ska-lite of No Doubt signals an appreciation for bands like The Specials or Madness. Also, by highlighting Achtung-era U2 and choosing a few obscure musicians (AgesandAges?), the president shows he has some hipster leanings.

Now, here is Mitt Romney’s 19-song playlist of tunes he listens to on the road:

The Soggy Bottom Boys - I Am A Man Of Constant Sorrow
The Killers - Read My Mind
Frankie Valli & The Four Seasons - December, 1963 (Oh What A Night)
Johnny Cash - Ring Of Fire
The Killers - Somebody Told Me
The Kingston Trio - The MTA (The Boston Subway Song)
The Beach Boys - Good Vibrations
Clint Black - Desperado (Live)
Roy Orbison - Crying
Commodores - Only You (Long Version)
Del Shannon - Runaway
Tim McGraw - It’s Your Love
Toby Keith - As Good As I Once Was
Kid Rock - Born Free
Willie Nelson - Over The Rainbow
Nat King Cole - Stardust
Roy Orbison - In Dreams
Keith Urban -Somebody Like You
Carrie Underwood - All-American Girl
Bonus campaign rally track: Silversun Pickups - Panic Switch

To Show He’s “With It”: The Killers, Silversun Pickups

To Show He Has Eclectic Taste: Nat King Cole, Johnny Cash, Commodores

Most Pandering Song: Even when stripped of all this political context, Kid Rock’s “Born Free” is one of the most pandering songs ever created. So when you pair it with a politician trying to ensnare the votes of Middle America, you get a Ford F-150 commercial come to life.

Notably Absent: Classical. No Bach to balance out Kid Rock? Guess Romney’s not so elitist after all. Also missing? Women. Carrie Underwood is the lone female voice on the list.

What It All Means: We were intrigued by the androgynous glam of The Killers’ “Somebody Told Me” paired with the psychedelic anthem “Good Vibrations.” Perhaps lurking underneath Romney’s straitlaced veneer is a wannabe party animal who lives vicariously through the cooler-than-thou, gender-bending David Bowie and the druggy Sgt. Pepper’s.

Conclusion: Both guys display an extensive knowledge of early rock n’ roll (Del Shannon, Booker T & The MG’s, etc.), which is to be expected. Obama has more breadth - he highlights soul as much as country, the ’90s as much as current acts and oldies. Apparently they’d both like to forget that the ’80s ever happened, but Romney would also like to forget that divas ever happened. When it comes to country, Romney is the clear winner, his choices of Johnny, Willie and Carrie totally punking Obama’s strange affinity for Darius Rucker and Sugarland. But Obama has a savvier ear for pop music.

Enough stalling, who would we rather spin some tunes with? We’d have to go with Obama, mainly because he’s more of a genre- and period-hopper. Which also makes us think he’d be more likely to rock out to the spin doctor-rejected songs we’d subject him to.

Which candidate would you rather jam with? Tell us on Facebook, Twitter or in the comments below.

2012 MTV Video Music Awards: Who Will Win Best Pop Video?

On Friday we gave our predictions for the Best New Artist category at the 2012 MTV Video Music Awards (airing live September 6), and now we’re tackling the behemoth known as Best Pop Video. Today’s pop landscape has expanded its reach into so many genres, and so many varying artists have adopted “pop” trappings, that dance, power vocals, clever rock and brazen hip-hop have all come together in a giant Voltron of musical bliss. And that’s why these last 12 months saw the return of the mega-hit, thanks to the likes of Adele, Usher, Nicki Minaj, Gotye, Carly Rae Jepsen and The Wanted - and that’s before you factor in the five nominees below. Read on to find out which video we think will win, and which we think should win.

BEST POP VIDEO NOMINEES:
fun. featuring Janelle Monae - “We Are Young”
Justin Bieber - “Boyfriend”
Maroon 5 featuring Wiz Khalifa - “Payphone”
One Direction - "What Makes You Beautiful"
Rihanna featuring Calvin Harris - “We Found Love”

THOUGHTS ON THE NOMINEES: We have eight juggernauts here, making this less like a heavyweight bout and more like those old WWF Royal Rumbles. The clear outlier here is fun., whose “We Are Young” is 2012′s most triumphant anthem, but it’s also the least danceable cut in the category. Despite the captivating slo-mo soiree riot constructed by the video’s director Marc Klasfeld, the quirky hit lacks the rabid backers of some of the other entries in the field.

And that would be Justin Bieber’s cue. This year he became a man (seriously, he turned 18), and the maturity translated over to his music. Upon first hearing the ethereal bass beat and seductive whispering of “Boyfriend,” everyone tried to figure out whether this was new material from Chris Brown or Justin Timberlake or Trey Songz, with the “Justin Bieber” guess way down on the list. While the Director X-helmed video was basic and unexciting, it showed the star as a swagged-out rebel without a cause leaning on a flashy car and groping girls. It was a message: The Biebz is all grown up.

Meanwhile, Maroon 5 certified their status as a pop hit assembly line, going straight from “Moves Like Jagger” to “Payphone,” which our readers voted as the song of the summer. Director Samuel Bayer crafted a condensed action movie (featuring some of the most inaccurate marksmen ever put to film) which reminded us of the golden age of late-’90s blockbuster music videos. Explosions, fast cars and a bank heist make this the most impressive nominee.

On the other end of the spectrum is John Urbano‘s minimalist video for One Direction. The Brits were depicted in rolled-up pants on the beach, VW van in tow, just hanging out having a good time. It was a clever strategy: the low-key, relatable video made for a healthy introduction to US audiences who may have scoffed at synchronized boy band dance cheese (not that we don’t love us some of that). And, c’mon - the song is undeniable.

Rihanna, meanwhile, had the artsiest, most high-concept video of the bunch (director Melina Matsoukas should get a special Moonman for the ribbon-vomiting idea alone). The frenetic depiction of volatile, doomed love served as a nice complement to the song’s cathartic electro drama. And we haven’t even mentioned the emaciated hipster Chris Brown lookalike.

WILL WIN: We think this one will come down to the Beliebers vs. the Directioners, with the Canadian vet edging out the British heartthrobs. With “Boyfriend,” Bieber broadened his appeal to mature listeners, while maintaining the charm that makes tween girls shriek. We may never know the real story behind the video’s original fire-and-water theme, but that doesn’t matter, because he’ll be adding another Moonman to his shelf for the official version.

SHOULD WIN: Rihanna had arguably the most fun song of the five nominated (1D’s is a close second), and if we’re going strictly by the word “video” (and not “song”), hers is the most realized artistic vision. In addition to being visually arresting, the video is an extension of the song’s theme.

Who do you think will win Best Pop Video at the 2012 MTV VMAs? Let us know below, or by hitting us up on Facebook and Twitter!

BEAUTICIAN MAGICIAN: A LIP ILLUSION

photos + post by amy nadine, graphic design by eunice chun

I love this super quick little tip for a fuller lip! Not only because it tricks the eye into seeing a more voluminous lip, but also because it’s so, so pretty and makes me happy! Here’s how to pull it off:

TOOLS

• Highlighting powder: You can use a frosted eye shadow or blush, it doesn’t matter as long as it’s lighter than the lipstick. I used Trish McEvoy’s Highlights Blush from my kit but it seems to be discontinued {sorry!} and this one is the closest match I could find. I love using a frosted pale pink paired with a red, fuchsia or even with a vamp lip color!
• Your favorite lip color: I used this lovely matte pencil on Carissa above, but you can use any color in any form as long as not metallic and it’s darker than the highlighting powder.

STEPS

1. Apply the lip color all over. You can use a lip brush for more precision or apply directly with the pencil or from the lipstick tube.
2. Dip your finger into the highlighting powder.
3. Slightly open your mouth and “stamp” your finger directly in the center of both your top and bottom lips.

You can go back with the lip color around the edges of the powder to make the stamp smaller if need be {I did}.