Sunday, 4 December 2011

The X Factor Semi Finals - The Round Up

Last night, the aromatic smell of victory was floating in the air as the final four took to the shimmering stage and sang their young hearts out for a place in next week's final ( I can't believe it has come so quick!!!). It feels like only yesterday that they were just fresh-faced auditionees wanting a shot at a music career and it is so impressive of how far they have come. Even if they don't win, it does not matter at all - they are definitely guaranteed a career of some sort in music or any other sectors of the entertainment industry. Last night the pressure was on like Donkey Kong!!! The final four all sang two songs each - one Motown classic and one that they believe will get them into the final! It's crunch time!!!

Song of the Week

Lady Gaga - Marry the Night

My favourite track from Born This Way by a mile!!! Love this song and video (even though you don't hear the song until the end of the vid)! Such a relatable song and also a gem for the dancefloor! Time to wear out this song on my iPod!!! The song is about the recovery from a very dark period in her life where she got dropped for her record label - very raw and emotionally honest!

Friday, 2 December 2011

Needthisinmylife.com

The X Factor Quarter Finals - The Round Up

And then there were 5! That coveted record deal is drawing nearer and nearer. As weeks have gone by I have noticed that these have gotten shorter and shorter by the week! Just goes to show how quickly time flies! This week the theme was Heroes and Guilty Pleasures and each of the finalists had two songs each - one 'guilty pleasure' song and one by one of their musical heroes. So who was flying high in the sky and who got a taste of Kryptonite and fell flat?

Ultimate style inspiration - Brigitte Bardot

I can't speak French, so I let the sexy fashion do the talking yeah!

How They Wear: Leather Skirts

A bit of nostalgia!!

This song totally reminds me of uni!!!

Love it!! So catchy!

The X Factor Live Show Week 7 - The Round Up

And then there were six!! Movies week! Woo!! Last night, the X Factor took a trip to the movies and provide us with some interesting performances. Bring on the glamour, the gowns and the glitz (and yet another very bizarre dance number from Mr Dermot O'Leary and the women in gold catsuits) as the finalists performed some familiar tracks from iconic movies. But who was a huge box office smash and worthy of an Oscar and who was just a bargain basement, straight-to-DVD flop and was worthy of a Razzie?

I Want Your Wardrobe!!

Find out after the jump who is on my style radar and whose getting me green with wardrobe envy!!!

Song of the Week

The X Factor Live Show Week 6 - The Round Up

In the words of Alan Carr, what a week it's been! Frankie Cocozza exited The X Factor so it opened up a place for one of the previous contestants who never got to face a public vote - Amelia Lily, James Michael, Jonjo Kerr and 2 Shoes. The public made the right choice and voted Amelia Lily back in which was the best decision ever made!!! Not sure why they got rid of her in the first place, to be honest! Anyway, this week's X Factor paid tribute to the wonderful Lady Gaga and Queen, who both totally smashed it at the MTV EMA's last week with knockout performances. So it was time to find out, who was on the edge of glory, and who just needed to shut their Playboy mouth?

The News that made me a very happy woman!!!

Song of the Week

Completely off the Richter scale!!!!

Labrinth ft. Tinie Tempah - Earthquake

Happy Birthday Tinie Tempah!!!

Happy birthday Tinie Tempah!!!

A blast from the past!!! Remember the gig with with Mr Hudson at Loughborough Student's Union last year!!! Memories!!

Sunday, 6 November 2011

The X Factor Live Show Week 5 - The Round Up

And then there were nine!!! Note to Dermot O'Leary: As much as I love you and think that you look very dapper in those suits every week, Halloween was last week and we therefore do not need your dancing every week. Sack the zombie choreographer!! Anyways, it was time to whip out those dancing shoes and get the mirrorballs out. It was Club Classics week, but who completely painted the town red and who was just murder on the dancefloor (not in a good way either)?

Beyond Genius!!! Jimmy Fallon - Justin Bieber Sings "(It's Not My) Baby" [HD & 3D Available]

Wondered how long it would take for someone to provide a bit of comic relief amidst the Justin Bieber paternity rumours! More to the point I wondered how long it would be before someone would parody Bieber's monster hit Baby. Probably the funniest thing I have seen in a very long time! Think I may have broken my funny bone after laughing so hard! This is absolutely genius!!! The fact that his singing voice is not-quite-spot-on is what makes it funny and the dance moves also look very convincing too! Very catchy indeed! I will never hear that Justin Bieber track in the same way ever again!! Jimmy Fallon, you are a ledge!!!

Tulisa stole my catsuit!!!

Let's hear you SCREAMMMMMMM!!! It was Halloween week on the X Factor this week so there were some interesting performances being conjured up in the rather boiling hot cauldron. But who made everything go bump in the night and who was just a reign of terror? Alexandra Burke, who previously appeared on the show in 2008 and became victorious, was sitting in for Kelly this week. Kelly was ill with a throat infection, which sounds rather nasty, and doctors therefore told her she wasn't able to travel. However, the scariest thing this week just had to be Louis's poor impersonation of Kelly Rowland, which was disturbing in its own way. In fact, I have no idea which was more terrifying, that or Dermot's creepy dancing at the very beginning of the show, where he actually did look like he'd been choreographed by a zombie or the living dead...

A Message To My Fans - Kim Kardashian videos, photos and blog: Official website

Monday, 31 October 2011

Britney Spears - Stronger

Oh my...how I miss old school Britney....

Song of the Week

Rihanna - We Found Love ft. Calvin Harris

Needthisinmylife.com

Plain Jane - My New Fave Show

Behold!!! I think I may have unearthed a new TV gem! After being a huge hit across the pond, Plain Jane is a show that takes a girl who lacks confidence and a proper fashion sense and introduces her to some confidence techniques including some extreme sports and adrenaline-pumping activities such as bungee jumping and even swimming with sharks. They are also each given brand new makeovers consisting of a shopping trip, a brand new wardrobe as well as a fancy new hairdo. However, it does not stop there as it turns out that each girl has a secret crush that they are keen to impress, unbeknownst to him of course. After the makeover, they are set up on a blind date in an exotic location in which the girl gets the opportunity to showcase her brand new look and now has the opportunity to utilise her new-found dating skills and self-confidence in order to try and impress him and see where things go from there. Sounds very exciting indeed! Already an addict! I am also quite appalled that I had never heard of the show before! It is more than a makeover show and takes the girls on a journey of self-discovery and helps them find their own identity rather than being something completely gratuitous and consisting of just going shopping.

The show is hosted by Brit-based-in-LA fashion journalist, TV presenter, star of The City and all-round fashionista Louise Roe who shows off an impressive, enviable wardrobe during the show. My new style icon I think. Eclectic, laid-back, and very bright - she sure loves her colour and prints. Think the LA/ California girl bohemian chic mixed with the edginess of London style.
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I WANT YOUR WARDROBE!!!

Some of my favourite Louise Roe outfits:

Love, love LOVE this purple coat!!!!

Sunday, 23 October 2011

The X Factor Live Show Week 3 - The Round Up

Big hair, big egos, big voices, big arguments, big performances...this can only mean one thing: Rock Week! So it is time to find out who was on fire and who was fizzling out in the frying pan. Which acts completely headbanged their way through tonight's show and which ones are just a piece of trash on the floor in a rockstar's hotel room? Feel the heat, embrace the madness, devour the drama, it's time to have a look back at this weeks serving of the X Factor live show...

The X Factor Live Show Week 2 - The Round Up

A little late but we shall continue. After the X Factor had turned into the Shock Factor yet again after four contestants were eliminated by the judges, it was business as usual this week. What was particularly shocking was that Amelia left as I though she completely owned her performance the previous night and absolutely blew the roof off! She had the most powerful voice out of the whole competition and it was the saddest thing ever to see her go. As for the rest of them it was time for them to up the ante as the pressure was on like a Bonbon where they had to sing their little hearts out for their chance at a life-changing career move. With the theme of love and heartbreak, there were about to be some hearts broken as the fate of these contestants was left in the safe hands of the British public....

Song of the Week

Nicki Minaj featuring Rihanna - Fly

I came to win, to fight, to conquer, to thrive
I came to win, to survive, to prosper, to rise
to fly
to fly

[Nicki Minaj]
I wish today it will rain all day
maybe that will kinda make the pain go away
trying to forgive you for abandoning me
praying but I think I'm still an angel away
angel away, yeah strange in a way
maybe that is why I chase strangers away
they got their guns out aiming at me
but I become near when they aiming at me
me, me, me against them
me against enemies, me against friends
somehow they both seem to become one
A sea full of sharks and they all smell blood
they start coming and I start rising
must be surprising, I'm just summising
I win, thrive, soar, higher, higher, higher
more fire

[Rihanna - Chorus]
I came to win, to fight, to conquer, to thrive
I came to win, to survive, to prosper, to rise
to fly
to fly

[Nicki Minaj - Verse 2]
Everybody wanna try to box me in
suffocating everytime it locks me in
painting they own pictures than they crop me in
but I will remain where the top begins
cause I am not a word, I am not a line
I am not a girl that can ever be defined
I am not fly, I am levitation
I represent an entire generation
I hear the criticism loud and clear
that is how I know that the time is near
so we become alive in a time of fear
and I aint got no muthaf-cking time to spare
cry my eyes out for days upon days
such a heavy burden placed upon me
but when you go hard your nay's become yay's
Yankee Stadium with Jay's and Kanye's

[Rihanna - Chorus]
I came to win, to fight, to conquer, to thrive
I came to win, to survive, to prosper, to rise
to fly
to fly

[Nicki Minaj - Bridge]
Get ready for it
get ready for it
get ready for it
I came to win
get ready for it
get ready for it
get ready for it
I came to win

[Rihanna - Chorus]
I came to win, to fight, to conquer, to thrive
I came to win, to survive, to prosper, to rise
to fly
to fly

Sunday, 9 October 2011

The X Factor Live Show Week 1 - the Round Up

What a live show it was last night! Embrace the drama, feel the fireworks, revel in the excitement! The performances last night really proved to be a mixed bag and there was plenty of conflict and bickering amongst the judges. The first theme of this week was UK vs. USA where the contestants had to take on a hot hit from an American artist and a British artist. After being informed of the cruel twist, in which each judge will have choose one of their own acts to go home on results night and consequently resulted in the suspension of the public vote for this week, the pressure was on to deliver knock-out performances to save themselves from elimination.

First up was Amelia Lily who completely smashed it with a very interesting rendition of Michael Jackson's Billie Jean. She gave a powerful performance and was rocking a new candy pink hairdo. She received excellent feedback form the judges unsurprisingly.
Next up was Johnny who gave a rather space-age like performance of Cher's huge hit Believe which did him no justice whatsoever. He received mixed feedback where Gary showed dislike for the performance where he described the performance as 'cheap'.
The Rhythmix ladies absolutely smashed it singing Hip Hop First Lady Nicki Minaj's super-duper hit, Super Bass and they really did put their own spin on it. They proved to be the sassy, kick-ass girlband that was desperately needed on The X Factor. They received a huge thumbs-up from the judges.
Frankie, who showed off a kooky new look, sang the tune of the moment The A Team by Ed Sheeran and proved to be a big hit with the judges but will this be enough to get him through to next week? Not too sure. Not a huge Frankie fan, to be honest...
Sophie proved to be a dark horse in the competition after she sang a stripped down version of Katy Perry's Teenage Dream with sexy dark locks and a killer new outfit. She looked absolutely stunning, hopefully she'll be saved. I honestly think that this girl has a lot more to offer in the competition.
Jonjo on the other hand seemed to lack a lot of confidence as he escaped right out of his comfort zone where he sang the classic rock song You Really Got Me and both Kelly and Tulisa expressed their disappointment but Gary had claimed that he had made Louis decision easy, which was a bit harsh.
2 Shoes added a touch of campness to the show with a Barbie-esque pink car and sang Girls Aloud's Something Kinda Ooh much to Gary's disappointment. Whether it was fun or crazy remains a question...
Reunited with his beloved guitar, James sang The Beatles Ticket to Rode. e had a great voice but it looks like it wasn't enough to impress the judges. Still believe that he has so much more to give if he stays in the competition.
Misha B totally smashed it with her rendition of Adele's Rolling in the Deep, in which he added her own urban flavour to it with her rap. Her stage presence was great and she was a massive hit with the judges!
Nu Vibe brought some sexiness where they sang Beautiful People which was pretty average, but there is quite a bit of room for improvement.
Marcus also killed it with his rendition of the current No.1 hit by Maroon 5 Moves Like Jagger with soulful vocals and looked very dapper.
Sami brought her powerful voice to the stage and even Gary said that he will walk out of the competition if she is not there next week Looks like things are really heating up.
The Risk then sang Plan B's She Said and completely nailed it. Not bad for a group who had just been put together at the Judges Houses' stage - so late into the competition. The new line up worked really well. Maybe it was the best risk that was ever taken...
Craig also proved to be one of the standout performances of the night singing Jar of Hearts with his very own arrangement. He proved to be a true artist and the gamble paid off brilliantly.
After bringing show much drama before, Kitty proved to be rather boring after her rendition of Who Wants to Live Forever, though it's obvious that she can sing and stuff. She didn't really bring anything to be honest.
Newly redhead Janet sang beautifully and brought the perfect closure to the live show where she sang Coldplay's Fix You.

No doubt that emotions will be running high on the results show. Oh, how it would totally suck to be an X Factor judge right now - they sure have a tough job ahead of them...

We'll have to see what happens.

Wednesday, 5 October 2011

The X Factor Judges Houses - The Round Up

After a very tough boot camp, the X Factor went global as the 32 finalists flew across many exotic locations from LA to Miami, Greece to Barcelona, all over the world in a last attempt to make it to the live finals. But this was no vacation, it was strictly straight down to business as their fate was hanging by a thread! Some would make the cut, for others it was the next plane home and the competition ended there and then for the contestants. So get ready, for tears, talent, guest judges, singing, hearts being smashed into pieces and then more tears as we round up all the exotic drama as the X Factor goes global. There were many big shocks along the way, but the biggest shock of all I must say was Sinitta being dressed a lot more conservatively?! Not sure what happened there. Maybe she wasn't quite in the mood? Or couldn't be bothered?

Barcelona...

I was right after all! Louis had put Goldie through but she later dropped out and we learnt that she had been replaced by Sami. Also sad that Terry didn't make it through to the next round as I felt he delivered a good enough performance, but I suppose that's how the cookie crumbles. Goldie put in a rather eccentric performance of J.Lo's On the Floor, which was very baffling indeed. She would have been a complete nightmare to mentor so maybe it was a blessing. Or a curse? This was the last we ever saw of her. On the plus side, Jonjo made it through to Louis's final four. Despite being a bag of nerves, he showed tonnes of potential and could be the dark horse of the competition if he finds a way to control his nerves. It was to my utter surprise that Louis had chosen Kitty as he previously mentioned she would be a nightmare to mentor!! Well let's just see how the cookie crumbles on this one!!

LA...

Over in La La Land, Robbie Williams joined Gary in a LA in which he took a leaf out of Sinitta's book (or wardrobe in this case) and made an, ahem, 'grand entrance'. Anyways, it was down to serious business though as the boys were required to sing in order to win a place in the final. Unfortunately, Luke Lucas fell at the last hurdle as he proved to be struggling with his song choice. Despite showing oodles of potential in the first round of auditions, the pressure got too much it wasn't enough to get him through and he was sent home. Gutted about John though - second time unlucky.He was clearly a better singer than Frankie. James was also a surprise, but I'm glad Craig got through. He'll go far in the competition. Glad Marcus got through, I was really routing for him as he absolutely smashed it. Not too sure about Frankie though. He seems to care more about getting laid then being a popstar. Maybe he should be on the Playboy channel instead of The X Factor...

Miami...

Over at Kelly's house in Miami where she was joined by Oscar-winner and American Idol alumni Jennifer Hudson with the girls. The X Factor became the Shock Factor when Jade failed to make it through and I would like to take this time to show my disdain. She should have went through! She has a beautiful voice! Someone who I never expected to get through was Sophie?! Still not too sure what to make of this but we will have to see whether she will prove to be a dark horse in the competition. Glad Amelia got through where she killed it with her rendition of E.T. Imagine if she and Katy Perry did a duet in the final?! Sick!!!!!!!!!!! No wait. Katy who?! Misha also impressed with her sassy appeal waiting to steal Jennifer's crown. Janet also made it through but needs to come out of her shell a bit! I reckon there are some serious contenders in the Girls category!!!! The heat is on!!!

Greece...

And the award for the most underwhelming category this year goes to .... *drum roll* the Groups. After a lot of mumbling and jumbling at boot camp, the final four were selected. But the jumbling didn't stop there after two lacklustre performances from The Keys and The Risk as Tulisa decided to take a risk of her own as she took the lead singer of The Keys and three fifths of The Risk and created a new group, retaining the name The Risk. Slightly worrying as it may deter groups from trying out next year. But with the roaring success of One Direction it could work out beautifully. Two Shoes made it as did Nu Vibe and Rhythmix.

And as for the BIG TWIST...

Wonder what it could be...

Another wild card where a few of the previous contestants are brought back and given a second chance to perform in the live finals?
The return of Simon Cowell or a fifth judge?
One of the finalists being eliminated before the finals even begin?

We shall have to wait and see. Exciting though...

Please don't cancel The Simpsons

D'OH!!!!!! Never thought I would hear 'The Simpsons' and 'cancellation' in the same sentence! This brought a slight tear to my eye! A major part of my childhood is about to be swept from under my feet! I practically grew up watching the show so to hear that there are rumours of a cancellation deeply saddened me as I can't describe how much I absolutely LOVE that show! It has become apparent that the voice actors of the show are facing a pay cut of up to a third and they are obviously not too happy about that, which could result in a cancellation...

I believe that the show has so much more to give and I don't want to watch 20 years and 23 seasons of re-runs every five minutes! I want more guest stars, more humour, more adventures and more clichéd catchphrases. I'll even be prepared to write my own episode if that's what it takes. I would even stand outside the FOX studio with a banner protesting if that's what it took!!! So FOX, Matt Groening and whoever else is involved - PLEASE don't cancel The Simpsons!!!!! *down on knees begging* I love that show soooo much!!! The voice actors should just take the pay cut and do a few more seasons or else I will cry myself to sleep for the rest of my life!!! I don't think I would ever sleep in fact!!

All you die-hard Simpsons fans, join me in protest!!!

Sunday, 2 October 2011

How gorgeous Does Diana Vickers look?

Diana Vickers looked quite the stunner and proved that she had come a long way from her X Factor days as an innocent little hippy. Here she is as the face of Collection 2000 working some smouldering make-up looks!

Look one: Collection 2000 Colour Pop (Created with: Collection 2000 Colour Match Foundation, Shimmer Shades Blusher, NEW Pump Up the Volume Mascara, Lasting Colour Lipstick in Pink Shock and Lasting Colour Nails in Geranium)

Look two: Collection 2000 Iconic Eyes (Created with: Collection 2000 Pump Up the Volume Mascara, NEW Intense Kohl Pencils and Shimmer Shades)

Look three: Collection 2000 Smokey Eyes (Created with: Collection 2000 Smokey Eye Palette, NEW Pump Up the Volume Mascara, Perfect Finish Foundation and Lock n Hold Lipgloss)

Look four: Collection 2000 Christmas Sparkle (Created with: Collection 2000 False Eye Lashes, Glam Crystals and Mosaic Glow)

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My personal favourite is the first look. I love the colour pop lipstick and would look great against an all-black outfit. I also like the smoky eyes look which, to me, is the classic look and is perfect for an epic night out. Very rock chick!!

Which is your favourite look?