Podcast: "Girl Down" (The BackBeat)

This week, we briefly get into the VMAs and discuss Lady Gaga’s latest career and new song Perfect Illusion, which is an interesting fusion of pop, rock, and disco. We also get into Kanye West’s Yeezy 4 Fashion Show, which has been getting more criticism than praise. Next, we discuss Tyga signing to Good Music and Ariana Grande’s upcoming tour and her new skills as a rapper. We end our hot topics with a discussion of Sean Paul’s critiques of Drake and Justin Bieber in regards to the appropriation of dancehall in mainstream music.

Stay tuned to the end of the episode where we break down our favorite songs of the moment. Marcus chooses hits from Laura Mvula, 99 Souls, and Tinashe. Kyera’s favorite songs right now come from K. Michelle, Travis Scott ft. Andre 3000, and D.R.A.M ft. Lil Yachty. Enjoy the show!

Podcast: "Shut Up & Listen" (The BackBeat)

In this week’s episode of The BackBeat, we discuss why TI should have just shut the hell up instead of saying his sexist comments about Hillary Clinton & women presidents, we review Bryson Tiller’s new LP Trap Soul, & share our thoughts on the American Music Award nominations, which recognized both Fetty Wap for Best New Artist and D’Angelo’s Black Messiah LP for Soul/R&B Album. We also look out how hip-hop culture is slowly taking over primetime with new shows by Ludacris, Diddy, and Donald Glover aka Childish Gambino are in the works. We get into our feelings over Bobby Brown’s alleged “tell all” book on Whitney Houston and Bobbi Kristina, as well as highlight the activism of Lady Gaga and Lupe Fiasco through their foundations to serve teenagers struggling with mental illness and bring start-ups to inner city communities.

Stay tuned to the end of the episode to hear what our Songs of The Moment are this week! Marcus chooses some great songs from Amel Larrieux, Tamar Braxton, and Janet Jackson. Kyera dips into the discography of Musiq Soulchild, Lady Leshurr, and The Internet.

Enjoy!

New Joint: "Do What U Want" (Lady Gaga ft. Christina Aguilera)

Lady Gaga and Christina Aguilera are starting 2014 off with a bang as they released the official studio version of their duet on Gaga's "Do What U Want," after performing a powerful live version on NBC's The Voice a few weeks ago.

While Lady Gaga duets with R. Kelly on the original, here's hoping that this revamped rendition of "Do What U Want" with Christina gets pushed to radio as it really is a nice duet between two of music's current reigning divas.

With that said, take a listen below to Lady Gaga and Christina Aguilera's collaboration on Gaga's current single "Do What U Want" and if you like what you hear, cop the download now on iTunes!

Live Clip: "Do What U Want" (Lady Gaga ft. Christina Aguilera)

Last night on NBC's The Voice, Lady Gaga stopped by during the finale to perform her R. Kelly duet "Do What U Want" and instead of R. Kelly sharing the stage with her, Christina Aguilera stood in and offered up a rousing rendition.

While much has been made in the headlines about a rumored feud between the two GRAMMY winners, they have continued to deny it and put all of their critics to rest last night when they shared the stage and offered up a powerhouse rendition of Gaga's current hit single.

Therefore, watch Lady Gaga and Christina Aguilera's performance of "Do What U Want" below and Enjoy!

Live Clip: "Do What U Want (Stripped Version)" (Lady Gaga)

Lady Gaga stopped by Alan Carr: Chatty Man to promote her recently released third studio album ARTPOP and during her time on the program, she performed a stripped-down rendition of her current R. Kelly assisted single "Do What U Want."

While R. Kelly was not across the pond with Gaga to perform "Do What U Want," her piano-led rendition really allowed Gaga's vocals to shine as well as the powerful lyrics of the song. I don't know about you, but I really heard the lyrics for the first time after watching this powerful performance from Gaga.

Either way, watch Lady Gaga's performance of "Do What You Want" from Alan Carr: Chatty Man below and Enjoy!

Live Clip: "Do What U Want" (Lady Gaga ft. R. Kelly)

Earlier tonight the 2013 American Music Awards aired and Lady Gaga was one of the featured performers for the night.

Fresh off her #1 debut for ARTPOP and her favorable turn on Saturday Night Live, it was clear from the start of the show that Gaga and R. Kelly were going to perform another rendition of their hit duet "Do What U Want."

While the first performance left many people confused, it appears as though Gaga and R. Kelly took a page out of ABC's Scandal's notebook, JFK and Marilyn Monroe affair and/or the infamous Bill Clinton and Monica Lewinsky scandal for inspiration for this performance.

With that said, watch their interesting theatrical performance of "Do What U Want" below and Enjoy!

Live Video of the Day: "Do What U Want" (Lady Gaga ft. R. Kelly)

Earlier tonight, Lady Gaga served as both host and musical guest on NBC's Saturday Night Live and for her first performance, Gaga opted to perform her R. Kelly assisted single "Do What U Want."

While Gaga has been performing "Do What U Want" sans Kellz for the past few weeks, luckily for those at 30 Rockefeller, the King of R&B graced SNL with his presence and offered up an impassioned performance of their hit duet.

Watch Gaga and Kellz work it out during "Do What U Want" below and Enjoy!

Live Clip: "Do What U Want" (Lady Gaga)

Last night, Lady Gaga took to BBC One's The Graham Norton Show to promote her forthcoming album ARTPOP and during her time on the show, Gaga performed her song "Venus" in addition to her R. Kelly assisted second single "Do What U Want."

While the King of R&B wasn't there for the performance, his vocals can be heard in the background as Gaga belts out a solid rendition of her current hit single, that I have a feeling will continue to climb the charts because it's just so damn catchy. With that said, watch her performance of "Do What U Want" below and Enjoy!

Playback: "Do What U Want" (Lady Gaga ft. R. Kelly)

Released as the official second single from Lady Gaga's forthcoming third album ARTPOP, "Do What U Want" usurped "Venus" as the officially followup to "Applause" after the immense reaction that the snippet of the song received after appearing in a Beats by Dre commercial a few weeks ago.

With that said, her  R. Kelly assisted single "Do What U Want," takes us back a bit to a retro 80s R&B vibe, mixed with some Euro-dance-pop flavor and after revisiting the joint yesterday, I have to say I'm hooked with the song's infectious chorus. Therefore, take a playback to "Do What U Want" below and lookout for ARTPOP when it's released November 11th!

New Joint: "Do What U Want" (Lady Gaga ft. R. Kelly)

At midnight EST Lady Gaga released the official audio to her collaboration with R. Kelly "Do What U Want," which is lifted from her forthcoming LP ARTPOP, and it appears as though Gaga is taking us back on this retro-vibed joint with the King of R&B.

While R. Kelly is featured sparingly for my tastes on this joint, their vocals together oddly work even though on paper this seems like an out of the box duet. With that said, take a listen below to "Do What U Want" and lookout for ARTPOP when it's released November 11th!

Project in the Works: "VH1 Divas Live : Dance With Somebody"

When I first heard that Vh1 Divas Live 2012's theme was going to be tribute to Whitney Houston, I got excited at the fact that Vh1 Divas Live in its prime has been able to pull some huge stars and with the passing of one of the greatest divas of all time, I just knew Vh1 would pull out all the stops to get Mariah Carey, Aretha Franklin, Celine Dion, Patti LaBelle, Mary J. Blige, Beyonce, Christina Aguilera, Jennifer Hudson, Brandy, Kelly Clarkson, Monica, Carrie Underwood, and numerous other powerhouse vocalists under one roof for a final send off to The Voice. While the unofficial setlist for "VH1 Divas Live : Dance With Somebody" hit the net yesterday, I took some time to go through an evaluate what Vh1 is trying to do.

While I am a bit disinterested in the top half of the set, though I can see where they are coming from with the "A List" performers for ratings purposes, I think they pretty much nailed it with "Queen of the Night" on. Though I never originally envisioned Lady Gaga or Pink taking part in the tribute, both of these Grammy-winning entertainers have some of the best vocals of the latest crop of "Divas" and with the potential addition of Christina Aguilera, the night could shape up to be one for the books. Though I hold out hope that a country powerhouse like Carrie Underwood can squeeze into the mix as Houston inspired all vocalist, the addition of Carly Rae Jepsen just seems out of place.

Either way you feel, I just hope Vh1 can secure the true Divas and divas-in-training(Aretha Franklin, Patti LaBelle, Mariah Carey, Mary J. Blige, Beyonce, Pink, and Kelly Clarkson) and possibly garner some more vocalists such as Yolanda Adams, Christina Aguilera and Carrie Underwood. In the end, Houston was known as "The Voice" and it would be a disservice to her legacy to have less than stellar vocalists honoring her in what appears to be the last monumental tribute to the late icon.

Amazing Cover: "Paparazzi" (JoJo)

Yesterday JoJo hit up Chicago's Hard Rock Cafe during her current mini tour and busted out a sublime acoustic rendition of Lady Gaga's "Paparazzi." Through this last month, JoJo has really been dropping some phenomenal covers of some of music's recent hits and I must say I wouldn't be mad if she dropped a covers mixtape before her album "Jumping Trains" is released in 2012. With that said, peep her amazing cover of Gaga's "Paparazzi" below and Enjoy!

Live Audio: "The Edge of Glory" (Lady Gaga)

Lady Gaga to me is at her best when she reverts back to her singer-songwriter self tickling the keys while belting out one of her songs acoustically. With that said, listen to this live audio of Lady Gaga doing just that to her current hit "The Edge of Glory," which is off of her sophomore album "Born This Way." Take a listen bellow and Enjoy!

Live Clip: "The Edge of Glory (Acoustic)" (Lady Gaga)

Though I've never been a "stan" for Lady Gaga, I've always given her props for being an amazing singer-songwriter who truly has a knack for pop lyrics and melodies. With that said, I really appreciate Gaga's acoustic version of "The Edge Of Glory," which is off of her new album "Born This Way." While the song is extremely catchy, Gaga's acoustic version really lets you hear her voice and the lyrical content of the song. Check out this live clip of her performing it at BBC Radio 1s Big Weekend bellow and Enjoy!

New Video: "Telephone" (Lady Gaga and Beyonce)

Enjoy!