BROOKE THAMES, A&E Writer
“Dark Sky Paradise” – Big Sean
Somewhere in the midst of breaking off his engagement to actress Naya Rivera to hold hands with teenybop pop-star Ariana Grande, Big Sean had the time to make music. Dark Sky Paradise dropped on Feb. 24 and consists of 12 tracks, including “I Don’t F**ck With You (ft. E-40)” – the only song of Big Sean’s that I have vaguely heard as background noise. I don’t do rap music, but those that do can stream Dark Sky Paradise on Spotify and purchase the album on ITunes.
“Empire (Original Soundtrack from Season 1)” – the Cast of Empire
If you’re not watching Fox’s new hit urban drama series, Empire, then what are you doing with your life? Not tuning in to the show’s amazing R&B/Hip-Hop tracks. Not only is the cast comprised of a talented troupe of actors, but actors that also double as musicians. All of the music featured on Empire is written by cast members such as Jussie Smollett and Bryshere Gray, who work as musicians outside of the tv series. Smollett and Gray have teamed up with Timbaland to produce a soundtrack of Hip-Hop excellence. Anything that has Timbaland’s fingerprints on it is sure to be amazing. The full-length soundtrack of season one of Empire drops on March 10 and is available for Pre-Order on ITunes. Empire airs at 9 p.m. Wednesdays on Fox.
“Invincible” & “Piece By Piece” – Kelly Clarkson
“Heartbeat Song” isn’t the only preview of Kelly Clarkson’s new album that we get to sing along to (although it may be my favorite). “Invincible” and “Piece By Piece” are the newest singles released from Clarkson’s new album Piece By Piece. The songs are extremely reminiscent of the American Idol’s trademark Pop-Rock sound but contain modern musical elements that are sure to take this Clarkson album over-the-top. Look out for Piece by Piece on Feb. 27 on ITunes.
“I Want You To Know (ft. Selena Gomez)” – Zedd
We’ve heard about their so-called collab-turned-romance for months, and now we finally have a song from Selena and her new rumored beau. “I Want You To Know (ft. Selena Gomez)” was released on Feb. 23 and is surprisingly not Selena’s song, but Zedd’s. Not surprisingly, Selena sounds as awful as usual. Things seemed to be looking up for Selena’s musical “ability” when “The Heart Wants What It Wants” came out last year, but any amount of auto-tune can make anyone sound halfway decent (ahem, Britney Spears). Some actresses should just stick to acting, especially someone with as much potential as Selena Gomez. Leave the music-making to Zedd.
