It’s a good week for female pop stars. To kick things off, rising talent Meghan Trainor has made it to No. 1 with “All About That Bass.” This is the fifth consecutive time a rookie has snagged the spot, with Charli XCX’s “Boom Clap” proceeding her. There’s even more this week from leading ladies.
Lorde has finally given fans a taste of what she’s planning. The “Royals” songstress is curating the soundtrack for Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part 1, which will arrive November 21 this year. Now she’s given us the cover: check it out here. She also announced the title will be “Yellow Flicker Beat,” and the track will be released September 30th. Lorde has kept herself busy recently, performing last weekend at the iHeartRadio event and is slated to play tomorrow at the Lifestyle Communities Pavilion in Columbus. She too toped the Billboard 100 with “Royals” late last year, and won a Grammy for Song of the Year in 2014.
Last year, Britney Spears made two songs with collaborator Blood Orange. 2013’s Britney Jean featured so many guests in the production process (including David Guetta, Diplo, Katy Perry Sia and others), that some of them didn’t make the final cut. Dev Hynes (Blood Orange) was one such guest. But the two tracks have finally made it to the public’s ears, as a SoundCloud user has just released them. While they’re still in demo form, they allude to a broodier Britney than her 2013 album portrayed. Hynes calls himself one of her bigger fans, “More than most 27-year-olds… she’s such a huge part of our growing up.”
Mary J. Blige has just come out with two new songs, (one co-written by “Stay With Me” star Sam Smith). Even though she’s been recording in England with different collaborators (like Disclosure and Naughty Boy), both tunes harken back to bits of her original style. “Whole Damn Year” (leaked, and since removed from the Web) is a bouncing-back themed number, complete with piano and a progressive beat. “Therapy” premiered on New York’s Z100 early September 22nd. The track has a strong gospel current running through it, alluding to co-author Sam Smith’s style. Blige’s voice in this number is already drawing comparisons to Amy Winehouse’s intonation. Listen to it here.