web analytics

Pop Rock Nation

Tag: Paula Abdul

  • 1991 MTV Video Music Awards – Funky Like Doo Doo

    I was looking through old video tapes some time ago and found a copy of the 1991 MTV VMAs. It reminded me how fun this show used to be. Let’s pretend it’s 1991 again and that I’m live blogging this thing. I’m 15 years old and ready to kick it like Arsenio.

    It’s now Arsenio’s third appearance in a row as host for the VMA’s and the dude is hot. Here’s to his Arsenio Hall Show being on the air until we’re all old and gray. Woof, woof, woof!

    Word on the street is that there’s a special guest to open the show. I wonder who it is?

    • It’s Pee Wee Herman!
    • Arsenio says it’s the 8th edition of the VMAs, but it’s the 10th anniversary of MTV.
    • He says everyone is in the back except Elvis and Rick James. Rick, did you have to burn her with the crack pipe? Couldn’t you have burned her with a cigarette or something?
    • Van Halen opens up the show. Time for me to use the restroom.
    • Everyone is wearing red ribbons for AIDS awareness. Where’s Magic?
    • Linda Hamilton has some big ass lips, but Steven Tyler might be skinnier than her.
    • REM wins for Best Group Video and I have a feeling they’ll be up many more times for Losing My Religion.
    • Downtown Julie Brown has a bright career ahead of her. I can just feel it.
    • Christian Slater just won the award for Worst Presenter At Reading Queue Cards.
    • How can C&C Music Factory steal Arsenio’s line for their new song? It’s just one of those things that make you go hmmmm …
    • Dude from C&C is wearing a see through blouse, biker shorts, nylons, and stirrups and keeps grabbing his package on stage. Maybe that’s to show us that he’s still a dude.
    • Hey, it’s Lenny Kravitz. Where’s Denise Huxtable?
    • REM wins again for Breakthrough Video and Michael Stipe just says, “Ok”. Great speech.
    • DJ Jazzy Jeff and The Fresh Prince are out to introduce the Best Dance Video. Our parents just don’t understand.
    • C&C Music Factory won by the way. Even that girl who can’t sing.
    • Mariah Carey is performing Emotions. Jeez, this girl is always wearing long sleeved blouses. She’s going to be 35 years old and wearing long sleeves. You can show some skin girl!
    • If REM wins one more award, I’m going to stop …. jeez, they just won Best Direction.
    • Cindy Crawford might be on my Top Five Women That I Want To Be “Romantically Linked” To If I Was Famous list. But wait, she’s going to be old one day. And maybe not so hot.
    • EMF aren’t that Unbelievable by the way.
    • I bet you anything that the lead singer of Color Me Badd gets really, really fat. Call it a hunch.
    • When did Janet Jackson get so hot? I didn’t even know she had breasts.
    • Who knew that MC Hammer had someone named Ho Frat Ho helping him with choreography?
    • Paula Abdul is looking a little chunky and she’s trying to sing live. I approve of lip synching here.
    • Why is Eazy E wearing little white shorts? That’s not gangster.
    • Woohoo! Rap Video Of The Year went to Double L who’s gonna rock the bells. That’s my man.
    • They should rename Queensryche, Queenswrongche.
    • Wayne’s World, party time, excellent!
    • Did I just say that LL was my man? Well, he is, but so is Brandon Walsh, who is presenting with Jennifer Connelly for Best New Artist. Hey, LL would let Brandon Walsh hang out in his hood. (Jesus Jones won by the way.)
      • LL just rocked the show with the performance of the night in a leather derby cap, leather pants, a big gold medallion, some nikes, and a silver belt, while shirtless.
      • The Video Vanguard Award is now the Michael Jackson Video Vanguard Award. Really, this show should be called the MTV Michael Jackson Music Awards. (By the way, Bon Jovi won the MJ award.)
      • The censor is about a half second off on every curse word.
      • The drummer for Metalica is dressed exactly like LL, except without the hat and gold medallion.
      • That Daisy Fuentes from MTV Mexico is kind of cute.
      • James Brown and MC Hammer just gave it three times for Arsenio. Hey, hey, hey!
      • Queenswrongche just won the Viewer’s Choice Award. I can live with that as long as it wasn’t REM.
      • LL is still sweaty from his performance. Go take a shower man!
      • Is Don Henley right for this show? The song is great, but he’s not shirtless, doesn’t have a mohawk, and isn’t wearing a woman’s blouse.
      • Guns N’ Roses are live from London and Axl Rose is wearing a kilt, what looks like a mini wrestling belt, and is just as sweaty as LL is.
      • Let’s hope that Gerardo doesn’t win Male Video Of The Year. I’m rooting for George Michael, just to see if Cindy Crawford accepts with him. Damn, Chris Isaak won.
      • Let’s do a poll. Is Cher really all that sexy? I say not, even as much as she forces it.
      • If Janet Jackson doesn’t win for Female Video, this show is rigged. Woohoo! But she’s not even there to accept. Must’ve been because they didn’t name the Video Vanguard after her.
      • Prince is on stage with the New Power Generation and his first move was to fall flat on his stomach and have other men jump on top of him, while thrusting him from behind.
      • There are also several men and woman in thong underwear cavorting on stage.
      • And Prince himself is wearing pants where the parts covering up his butt are gone, so if you ever wanted to see Prince’s butt cheeks, this is your chance.
      • Arsenio just said it was funky like doo doo.
      • Well, I didn’t get George and Cindy winning an award together, but they are out to present the Video Of The Year.

      • Cindy just said Prince stole her yellow pants. If they were really Cindy’s pants, Prince would’ve had to roll them up about three or four times.
      • And guess who wins for Video Of The Year? If you guessed anyone but REM, you’d be wrong.

  • Is Four A Crowd For The American Idol Judges?

    When word got out yesterday morning that American Idol was introducing a fourth judge, my immediate response was to question why. And when I found out it was songwriter Kara DioGuardi, my next response was, “Who dis?”

    Money Mike smartened me up.

    She’s a pretty popular songwriter. Her name’s probably not known much outside of industry circles, but then again, Randy Jackson and Simon Cowell’s weren’t either. She’s written for Christina Aguilera, Jessica Simpson, Kelly Clarkson-basically she’s Sony BMG’s right hand girl.

    She definitely has credentials. However, if they want to make some changes to the show, I don’t think they looked in the right place. While they are definitely a batty bunch, Simon, Paula, and Randy have really good chemistry together. And adding a fourth voice either takes away some of the Simon/Ryno Seacrest back and forth (which is either the best or worst thing on the show based on your sense of humor), or it makes the show feel more rushed. They are rushed enough.

    This file is licensed under Creative Commons Attribution ShareAlike 2.0 License (cc-by-sa-2.0).

    Money Mike thinks it’s a change directly related to sliding ratings and it definitely could be that. But if that’s the case, I think it’s a bad move. It’s still the biggest show in America. I think they’ve made changes for the better recently. They’ve allowed the artists to play their own instruments and the show feels a little more human because of it. But changing the judges feels way too much like a publicity stunt. Mike thinks it’s there to create drama and I think he’s right. But it could create the wrong kind of drama. The kind that gets you to turn off the television.

    But the show is too iconic for it to really be hurt by anything short of Simon leaving, so I think they’ll be ok.

    Paula Abdul agrees with me though. And that’s a scary thought.

    She was interviewed by MTV.com’s Jocelyn Vena and had this to say.

    “I am concerned about the audience and acceptance. Time will tell. We’ll see.”

    She also added that having a fourth judge will take all the fun out of tie breaking and now breaking ties will probably fall into the hands of Simon.

    “I’m sure Simon will get to make the final [call]. It takes the fun out of all the hard work I do to push those kids through.”

  • The Infatueighties Countdown: #95: “Straight Up”

    Twenty years later, it’s hard to believe that the woman on “American Idol” who appears to be incapable of stringing together a complete sentence was once the hottest chick in the game, but…between 1989-1991 or so, Paula was right up there with Madonna and Janet. Actually, if you pull Madge’s “Immaculate Collection” out of the equation, Paula’s two hit albums, 1988’s “Forever Your Girl” and 1991’s “Spellbound”, outsold Madonna’s entire recorded output from 1989-1996, which consists of three studio albums and a movie soundtrack. Her influence might not have been as far-reaching, but there was definitely a period when she was the preferred option.

    The cover of Paula Abdul\'s 1989 smash \"Straight Up\".

    While songs like “Opposites Attract” and “Rush Rush” haven’t exactly aged well from a musical standpoint (and the less said about the horrific videos for both, the better), “Straight Up” retains it’s flavor two full decades after it launched Paula’s career (and if we can backtrack for a second, keep in mind that this was the third single release from “Forever Your Girl”…how many labels these days would burn two singles from an artist before breaking them out?). Paula has never been the world’s greatest singer (in the understatement of the year), but she laid into this track with enough attitude to offset her limited vocal capability. Combine the attitude with a relentless backing track and you have a song that served as an anthem to all the ladies out there who were taking no shit from sometimey guys.

    Plus, the lady could dance her ass off back in the day. The video’s still mesmerising to watch.

    …And can someone tell me why she looks exactly like Lisa Lisa on the single cover?