:: arjanwrites music blog ::

Backstage at the MTV Logo NewNowNext Awards

If you missed the MTV Logo NewNowNext Awards tonight, make sure to catch some fun backstage footage of Arjan, D.A. of Chester French and Luke of Heloise & Le Savoire Faire and much more here.

A special award for Total Awesomeness goes to D.A of Chester French for saying all those nice things and totally understanding what this blog is all about.

Also a big, big thank you to Michelle Williams of Destiny Child for announcing the ArjanWrites.com Award during the show. Pinch me! That was totally amazing.

Lastly, big hugs for John, Matt, Christopher, Collin, Michael, Megan, Jonathan and all the other fine people at MTV Logo for making me a part of the first-ever NewNowNext Awards. Thanks y'all!

Tune In Now: MTV Logo NewNowNext Awards 2008

Click here to watch now!
Click here to watch now!
Click here to watch now!

Semi-Precious Weapons Wins 2008 MTV Logo ArjanWrites.com Brink of Fame Song Award

It's official!

Semi-Precious Weapons is the winner 2008 MTV Logo ArjanWrites.com Brink of Fame Song Award for "Magnetic Baby." Congratulations guys!

Thanks to all the ArjanWrites.com readers and fans of all the nominees for voting, voting and voting. Thousands and thousands of you voted and showed your support for the nominated artists. It was an incredibly close race, but the punk-rockers from New York ended up as the winner.

Watch more NewNowNext goodness right here.

Tune in Tonight! MTV Logo NewNowNext Awards

Tonight is the night!

Tonight, MTV Logo will be airing the annual NewNowNext Awards. If MTV Logo is missing from your cable package or if you live overseas, you can catch the entire show plus loads of bonus footage on NewNowNextAwards.com. All the action kicks off online at 8 p.m. ET with a pre-show program. The show starts at 9 p.m. ET.

Also, tonight the winner of the 2008 MTV Logo NewNowNext ArjanWrites.com Brink of Fame Song Award will finally be announced. Thousands and thousands of you have voted and a clear winner has emerged. Watch the show to find out from me personally who has won this award.

Just to refresh, these are artists are the nominees of the 2008 MTV Logo NewNowNext ArjanWrites.com Brink of Fame Song Award:

Chester French "She Loves Everybody"

Semi-Precious Weapons "Magnetic Baby

LadyGaga "Just Dance"

Hercules & Love Affair "Blind"

Heloise & Le Savoir Faire "Illusions"

Janelle Monae "Many Moons"

Thanks for voting folks. This was your award. Keeping it sweet & crunchy. Always.

Listen to "Just D.A.N.C.E." (LadyGaga vs Justice Mash Up)

MK has posted a fantastic mash up of new queer queen LadyGaga and French electro maestros Justice courtesy of DJ Paul V. The mixmeister even included a little bit of Bowie for rebel's sake. Make sure to catch LadyGaga this weekend at MTV Logo NewNowNext Awards on MTV Logo and online at NewNowNextAwards.com. The madness kicks off at 9pm ET and will be followed by a post-show.

Listen to "Just D.A.N.C.E." (LadyGaga vs Justice Mash Up)

A Few Little Bits About Justin Tranter

Justin Tranter is a rock god in the making.

The deliciously "kunty" frontman of New York glam-rock band Semi-Precious Weapons has been stirring up a sensation in clubs around the country and in the U.K. in anticipation of their debut LP "We Love You." The album will be out on Razor & Tie Records later this year.

I briefly ran into Justin and the band (at an escalator of all places) right before the taping of the MTV Logo NewNowNext Awards on Times Square last week. The group made a quick photo appearance before heading over to play a show at Irving Plaza.

If you're new to Semi-Precious Weapons, I pulled together a few little factoids about Semi-Precious Weapons and Justin Tranter to give you a bit more insight into this phenomenon on the rise.

Tranter likes to hang out at fancy hotel bars, because their managers often "get a little upset when men in full makeup dance around in 6-inch heels in front of all the nice people staying there for the week."

Three albums that had the most influence on Tranter are Patty Larkin's "Perishable Fruit," The Little Mermaid soundtrack and Patty Griffin's "Thousand Kisses""

The singer considers the the entire Mandy Moore catalog his guilty pleasure songs.

If he wasn't a performer, Tranter admits he would be "collecting cans and cashing them in at Key Food, because I actually did that for awhile and I was pretty into it."

Not only did Tranter release his very successful Fetty jewelry line , but he also entered into a partnership with Donna Karen to release his own brand of sneakers.

The first concert Tranter ever saw was a Paula Cole concert: "It was fucking stunning. She wore masks, growled, screamed, and sang her ass off. Actually it was kinda rock ’n roll."

Designing jewelry should come as no surprise as his mother is a designer of engagement rings. "She only does like ten to fifteen rings a year, but when they’re massive diamonds it ends up being a good time."

Head over to the Semi-Precious Weapons web site to stock up on Tranter merchandise, including "fucking gorgeous gloss" and a "genderless hoodie"

Great Britain's Princess Beatrice is a closeted Tranter fan and treated herself to $3000 Fetty ring at Barney's last week.

(Semi Precious Weapons is nominated for the MTV Logo ArjanWrites Brink Of Fame Award. Vote here.)

Listen to New Hercules & Love Affair Remixes

Check out some excellent new remixes of Hercules & Love Affair's new single "Blind" that features vocals by the amazing Antony. House legend Frankie Knuckles, London DJ Serge Santiago and Hercules himself created some pumping new renditions of the high-energy, disco-driven original track, which is already a killer tune by itself. 

After almost 30 years in the business, Knuckels demonstrates that he is still a master at churning out high-grade house productions. He took the original to a whole new level and created two glowing renditions of the song that feature a sleek and sexy bass line. Very chic. (It would have made a fitting addition to this.)

Running for almost 11 minutes, Santiago's mix is much more geared towards the underground dance floor with its massive big room soundboard stylings that contrast nicely with Antony's emotive vocals. (Hercules & Love Affair are nominated for the MTV Logo ArjanWrites.com Brink of Fame Award. Vote here.)

Listen to H&LA "Blind" (Hercules Club Mix)
Listen to H&LA "Blind" (Frankie Knuckles Mix)
Listen to H&LA "Blind" (Frankie Knuckles Dub)
Listen to H&LA "Blind" (Serge Santiago Remix)

Special Report from MTV Logo's NewNowNext Awards (Part 2)

More updates from Monday night's taping of the MTV Logo NewNowNext Awards in New York City. Read Part 1 of my notes here.

One of my favorite performers of the night were Dangerous Muse who made their television debut together with an additional keyboard player and drummer. It is a top-notch performance you won't quickly forget. In fact, there is a little microphone action going on that will surely go viral on YouTube as soon as it airs on June 7.

The group's sound has evolved quite a bit and is a lot richer and rockier than their electro-based songs they released previously. I nearly wet my panties when the duo's Tom Napack told me about some of the people that worked on their forthcoming debut album. It will blow your mind and make you want to hear this record. Unfortunately, I promised Tom and Mike not to publish it (sorry that I have to be such a tease).

LadyGaga is Little Miss Hotness. Super photogenic, super sexy and super talented. She performed the show's finale, which was an elaborate production with no less than 15 dancers.

I did some backstage interviews with MTV Logo vlogger and blogger John Polly and some of the ArjanWrites.com Brink of Fame Awards nominees that will air during the television show on June 7. Great shout outs from Chester French and Heloise's Luke. Thanks for that.

Turntable icon Junior Vasquez spun at the afterparty and did a cool mash up of some of my nominees' songs.

Heloise & The Savoire Faire surely has the tallest drummer in the music business. Luke stands 6'7 tall and even trumped me (and I'm 6'3).

The Cliks performed at the show and rocked it. These chicks are tight.

Project Runway's Christin Siriano is so cute in person. As fierce and super-fabulous as on TV.

And finally, don’t forget to vote for the MTV Logo ArjanWrites.com NewNowNext Award. Only a selection of awards were announced during the show. The ArjanWrites.com Brink Of Fame Award will be announced during the show.

Special Report from MTV Logo's NewNowNext Awards

Last night, MTV Logo taped their annual NewNowNext Awards show at the MTV Studios right schmack in the middle of New York's Times Square. I'm incredibly honored that the fine folks at MTV named an award after this blog to highlight some of the most noteworthy new, now and next music talents. I nominated six sweet & crunchy and emerging talents for the MTV Logo ArjanWrites.com Brink of Fame Award.

A first round of winners were announced during the show last night. Winners included Leona Lewis (International Crossover Star Award), Tina Fey (Cause You're Hot Award) and Christian Sirano (Most Addictive Reality Star). The ArjanWrites.com Brink Of Fame Award is one of the awards that will be announced when the show airs on June 7. Voting is still in full swing so make sure to vote now! It is a very close race so your fave artists need your support (and you can vote as often as you like).

Just a few notes twittered directly from the backstage and viewing area:

MTV set designers built a gorgeous set at the MTV Studios that mimicked an East Village street scene. Very cool.

When I entered the backstage area an hour before the start of the show I was excited to meet and greet four of the six nominees of the ArjanWrites.com Brink Of Fame Award: Chester French, Semi-Precious Weapons, Heloise & The Savoire Faire and LadyGaga. Thanks to all of you for coming out!

Cyndi Lauper performed her brand-new song "Into The Night Life" during the show. What a helluva tune and what a helluva performer. Standing ovation.

D.A. of Chester French left me with a handful of "She Loves Everybody" CDs that were packaged in giant condom wrappers that were the talk of the after-party.

I'll never wear so much white again. I had a major wardrobe "malfunction" and had to run back to my hotel to change right before the start of the show.. Glad I was smart enough to bring an extra outfit.

Last-minute addition to the show's guestlist was Leona Lewis. Word was that she had to hail a cab to Times Square to make it to the show on time after her driver's car broke down. She's such a doll. Humble and sweet.

More updates to come. Don’t forget to vote for the ArjanWrites.com Brink of Fame Song Award.

Vote Now! Introducing the Nominees for the MTV Logo ArjanWrites.com Brink of Fame Song Award

Tata! Check out the six artists I've nominated to win the MTV Logo 2008 ArjanWrites.com Brink Of Fame Song Award. I've written about all of these performers in recent months and all them serve up a sweet and crunchy sound that will give you something to chew on for a good while. Let me re-introduce all six again:

Janelle Monae
Janelle is one of my latest discoveries who has really impressed me with her music, message, mind and movement. She's truly one of those rare talents who dares to think out of the box to create her own distinct brand of music. Growing up in Kansas City, Monae left her troubled surroundings to pursue a career in musical theater in New York City. But her love for Judy Garland, Elvis Presley, Tupac and Michael Jackson took her to Atlanta where she established her own record label and recorded her debut album with Outkast's Big Boi. The result is an exciting LP that offers as much style as substance, which is rare these days.
Listen to "Many Moons"

Chester French
I was one of the first music writers to recognize the talent of these Harvard grads back in the fall of 2006. Captured by their melodic ditties and lyrical wit, I knew that D.A. Wallach and Maxwell Drummey were in it for the love of good music and solid songwriting. Fast-forward to the spring of 2008. The duo is now signed to Pharrell Williams' StarTrak Records and they are preparing their big label debut in September. And even though Chester French are not gay, they are equal opportunity music makers, which makes them even cooler.
Listen to "She Loves Everybody"

Semi-Precious Weapons 
I remember interviewing Justin Tranter years ago when he was doing his solo stuff. He struck me instantly as someone who is never going to fit in a pre-defined little box to meet people's expectations. That's just too boring. Now heading up glam-rock outfit Semi-Precious Weapons, the band is heading for the big time with people like Kate Moss and Jake Shears as some of their biggest fans.
Listen to "Magnetic Baby"

Hercules & Love Affair
Andrew Butler chose the name Hercules & Love Affair for a reason. In Greek mythology, Hercules is considered one of the most adventurous characters. And Hercules & Love Affair is just that. Old-school funk infused with modern electronica and crazy fun discoball glitter. It is a sound that immediately captured me with its quirky stylings that made a lasting impression.
Listen to "Blind"

Lady Gaga
The boys are going gaga over this hot new Lady. Powerful vocals, a spunky attitude and a powerful dance groove can go a very long way, but its her burlesque pop that make LadyGaga a unique phenomenon on the New York dance scene. Before we know it she'll be tearing up a club near you. Simply irresistible.
Listen to "Just Dance"

Heloise & The Savoire Faire
Fronted by the super charismatic Heloise, this band creates a mesh of late-'70s disco-infused dance punk and '80s synth-pop that might remind you of Scissor Sisters, Glass Candy and perhaps even The Gossip. It is a totally super fun sound that will have you jive a little - on the dance floor or your living room.
Listen to "Illusions"