Music Notes with Jess

Rihanna came out of a 5-year music hiatus for 2 occasions: singing on Black Panther: Wakanda Forever's soundtrack, and performing the halftime show at 2023's Super Bowl. One of the songs "Lift Me Up" has been praised by music critics and movie award committees. Up for the Academy Awards' Best Original Song category, I discuss the history of Black Panther's character, both songs Rihanna sings in th...

The Voice will premiere its 23rd U.S. season with a lot of changes. Hear this preview regarding Team Blake, new celebrity coaches who were on other music competition shows, and adjustments made to The Voice's singing rounds. Theme Song: "Dance Track", composed by Jessica Ann Catena The Voice's links: http://www.nbc.com/TheVoice Peacock streaming link: https://www.peacocktv.com/stream-tv/the-voice...

Linkin Park's been on hiatus since 2017, after their frontman Chester Bennington's suicide. Making Billboard history, they now have a #1 new-ish song on rock radio. Learn about the band's bio, "Lost"'s single, and upcoming box set. Theme Song: "Dance Track", composed by Jessica Ann Catena Linkin Park discography: https://open.spotify.com/artist/6XyY86QOPPrYVGvF9ch6wz?si=MVmCm93tQIOONElyo7CunQ Mike...

Love songs composer Burt Bacharach, passed away peacefully on February 8th, at age 94. Showcasing his great body of work, I created a top 20 of my favorites from his catalog. Theme Song: "Dance Track", composed by Jessica Ann Catena Playlist: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/1uCCtSmvv8Ee1DXHFq4UPR?si=2e4113bd446a4da1&pt=c569bb78ff92e150c6e48269fac04902 20. “Do You Know the Way to San Jose?” 1...

Titanic's 1997 film adaptation, is temporaily re-released in theaters. Find out why learning about the ship's history, movie, and love theme song "My Heart Will Go On" by Celine Dion. Theme Song: "Dance Track", composed by Jessica Ann Catena Titanic (1997): https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0120338/?ref_=nv_sr_srsg_0 Soundtrack: https://open.spotify.com/album/2vbms1edEpirypSspyXZgB?si=Wm_SzRSPQPuyAoGaJ...

Before the 65th Grammy Awards air, I've shared my winner predictions for: Best Compilation Soundtrack for Visual Media, Best Pop Vocal Album, Best Rock Performance, Best R&B Performance, Best Melodic Rap Performance, Best Country Album, Best New Artist, Song of the Year, Record of the Year, Album of the Year . Grammys: https://www.grammy.com/awards/65th-annual-grammy-awards-2022 https://twitte...

The first big hit of 2023, is Miley Cyrus' promo single "Flowers." It's a female empowerment anthem, making fans analyze its lyrics and music. In this episode, we explore Miley Cyrus' career origin, analyze "Flowers" comparisons, and record breaking charting history. "Flowers"' music video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G7KNmW9a75Y Seventeen magazine article: https://www.seventeen.com/celebrity/...

Lisa Marie Presley, daughter of iconic singer Elvis Presley, died 1/12/23 from cardiac arrest. She was seen publicly 2 days before at the Golden Globes with her mom, to support her dad's 2022 biopic Elvis . Looking just like her father, she also took an interest in music, and 3/4 marriages were to musicians. One of them was Michael Jackson, whom she shared 2 moments of his career. I discuss Lisa M...

Barmageddon is a new celebrity game show playing popular bar games and sports. It's produced by The Voice's Blake Shelton and Carson Daly on USA, hosted by WWE wrestler Nikki Bella. Learn behind-the-scenes info how this show came about, and instructions on playing the 11 different games they've done. Theme Song: "Dance Track", composed by Jessica Ann Catena Barmageddon website: https://www.usanetw...

Happy New Year! Leaving where we left off Episode 168, here's the remaining 20 I've ranked for my Top 40 Songs of 2022 playlist! Theme Song: "Dance Track", composed by Jessica Ann Catena Top 40 Songs of 2022 Playlist: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/375jKlpzmt7W7WYJA5NAfq?si=975bae99fc3b4c4c 20. "Love/Hate Letter to Alcohol" - Post Malone feat. Fleet Foxes 19. "Bad Habit" - Steve Lacy 18. "BREAK...

Research shows that consumers preferred streaming retro more than current in 2022. No matter how hard artists worked releasing new music, the popular songs were either from the past 2 years, or throwbacks that went viral. I can tell you the 40 songs I’ve selected were promoted in 2022 and vary in genre without repeating artists. Broken up in 2 parts, we’ll countdown 40-21 in this episode, and fini...

Did you know there's 2 Christmas carols titled "All I Want for Christmas Is You"? The infamous one is 1994's by Mariah Carey, but there's another one overlooked from 1989. Andy Stone sued infringement because of that June-November 2022, wishing more recognition for his band Vince Vance & The Valiants. Both of these songs were influenced by 1960s music, yet are musically different from each oth...

Netflix's new Addams Family spinoff 'Wednesday', is their second most viewed English series! A particular scene featuring the lead character's dance solo, has surged a 1981 indie punk song appear on Billboard's charts: "Goo Goo Muck" by The Cramps. I discuss The Addams Family franchise, 'Wednesday''s spinoff story arc, and "Goo Goo Muck"'s new fame. Snap to it <snap, snap>, listening to this...

Fleetwood Mac's keyboardist Christine McVie, died 11/30 in a hospital from a brief illness, at age 79. Involved with the band over 50 years, I created a top 10 of her music contributions. Listen "everywhere", "thinking about" this "songbird." Theme Song: "Dance Track", composed by Jessica Ann Catena Christine McVie songs playlist: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/1u4UqTfA8DSkF8v4NmJulF?si=97c471b...

Award winning songstress Irene Cara, was found dead at her home 11/25/22. Her cause of death is still unknown. Looking back at her career, I spotlight her 3 soundtrack hits: "Fame", "Out Here On My Own", and "Flashdance... What a Feeling." Theme Song: "Dance Track", composed by Jessica Ann Catena Irene Cara discography: https://open.spotify.com/artist/3oZa8Xs6IjlIUGLAhVyK4G?si=JAQkhuAFRx2QLWjeRKSZ...

FOX has been successful airing music shows for 2 decades. Monarch's a new drama that premiered this fall, increasing their primetime non-reality viewership in 3 years! Up for renewal, I recap Monarch's storylines between the characters, compare it to former music dramas Empire and Nashville, and the marketing each show did with fans. Theme Song: "Dance Track", composed by Jessica Ann Catena Monarc...

Before the 50th American Music Awards aired 11/20 8pm on ABC, I made 32 predictions of what could've won some of its popular categories. The show can be streamed on Hulu, and ABC On Demand. My predictions ballot will be posted on this podcast's social media an hour before the show, and night after. Theme Song: "Dance Track", composed by Jessica Ann Catena Music Notes with Jess' Social Media: http:...

"Weird Al" Yankovic is notorious for rewriting popular songs' lyrics. Getting closer to his debut album's 40th anniversary, a satirical biopic got released on Roku: Weird: The Al Yankovic Story, starring Harry Potter actor Daniel Radcliffe. Covering all bases, I countdown 10 of Weird Al's parody songs, and background of the original songs they're adapted from. Theme Song: "Dance Track", composed b...

Before the 56th CMA Awards air, I shared my predictions who may win their 11 music categories. It aired 11/8 8pm on ABC, and live simulcasts on selected country radio stations. Available to stream day after- ABC On Demand, and Hulu. I'll post my predictions ballot an hour before showtime, and night after with the results. Music Notes with Jess' social media: https://www.facebook.com/10006357675278...

Happy Halloween! Michael Jackson's 6th album 'Thriller' is approaching its 40th anniversary! A box set and documentary will be unveiled soon. Looking back at the world's biggest album then and now, I share the celeb collaborations who participated, marketing of the title track, and transform its lyrics into a spooky Halloween folktale. Sound effects taken from Soundscape's Pottery Barn Halloween C...

Queen's Brian May and Roger Taylor, recently presented an archived 1988 recording. It's a song titled "Face It Alone", with late frontman Freddie Mercury singing lead! The track was intentionally recorded during the making of 1989 album The Miracle, but didn't make the cut on any of Queen's future work. In this episode, I'll review The Miracle's tracklist, "Face It Alone"'s music arrangements, and...

Pop/R&B's Bruno Mars is a talented songwriter, vocalist, collaborator, leader of his band The Hooligans, and created award winning duo Silk Sonic with Anderson. Paak. He just became the first musician to achieve 6 Diamond singles, selling over 10M copies! I discuss which ones from his catalog. Theme Song: "Dance Track", composed by Jessica Ann Catena Playlist: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/5hX...

Working his way up as a young musician and producer, Steve Lacy got his break in funk group The Internet, and now has a #1 crossover hit! "Bad Habit" just made Billboard history topping 3 genre charts simultaneously. I discuss Steve's music experience, break down "Bad Habit"'s unique arrangement, and analyze how it's currently being marketed. Theme Song: "Dance Track", composed by Jessica Ann Cate...

Within a year, Kelsea Ballerini is the 3rd female singer to release a divorce themed concept album: 'SUBJECT TO CHANGE'. (In 2021, Kacey Musgraves did 'Star-Crossed', and ADELE reflected in '30'. ) Including current single "HEARTFIRST", I created a top 10 of her country hits. Theme Song: "Dance Track", composed by Jessica Ann Catena Kelsea Ballerini discography: https://open.spotify.com/artist/3Rq...

Janet Jackson's 4th album Rhythm Nation 1814 is 33! Its title track is infamous across pop culture, but trended unexpectedly again due to its literal music notes. The bass line caused laptops to crash and Microsoft had to install an audio filter to repair. Analyzing my favorite Janet Jackson album as a superfan, I share what influenced the concept album, innovative presentation of its title track,...