Why America should embrace Fifth Harmony

via glooce

 

It's been quite the hot minute since pop culture has glorified "girl power." At least that's what Simon Cowell thinks. The concept most recognizably takes the form of a young female pop group as it skyrockets to the top of the charts.

Now not since Beyonce decided Destiny had only one child, have we seen the rise of a talented world-famous girl group. That's why Cowell has manufactured one out of five quirky, talented, young vocalists from all over the country who auditioned for the current season of The X Factor. Together, Fifth Harmony are supplying a healthy dose of "girl power," and they best continue whether they win the reality TV singing competition or not.

Unlike the Spice Girls, another set of manufactured girl-empowered pop stars, the Fifth Harmony gals comes off as genuine despite their quickly increasing production value. Their rendition of Ellie Goulding's "Anything Could Happen" was like something you'd see at the VMAs. The dresses, the ballon table, the fairy waiters, everything was bombastically saccharine, reminiscent of Katy Perry's current cotton candy craze, yet it did not feel sticky nor cringe-worthy. In fact, if anything, whereas late 20-something Perry comes off ridiculous wearing cupcakes for bras, Fifth Harmony's princess-inspired performance was the epitome of age-appropriateness, their sweet sixteen.

The new girl group first made their pink-tinged splash performing for Cowell (and Marc Anthony?) at the producer's home. Considering the five girls originally auditioned as solo artists and proved their place in the preliminary sing-offs, it's no surprise their joined-force rendition of "Impossible" showed that behind the cutesy, girly personas were truly powerhouse singers with an affinity for catchy vocal stylings. It was X-Factor fate that these five super talented teens would one day join forces and perform. Perhaps reality TV does have its place as the only stage where stars this big ever come across each other's paths and join to become supernovas. How else would five star-quality singers meet and decide to pursue a recording contract?

Week after week to hear each Fifth Harmony member pull her weight in the vocal department was extremely gratifying, especially being truly discerning about not being enough talent currently on television. Britney Spears didn't deserve the $15 million salary to be an X-Factor judge, and Khloe Kardashian didn't deserve her 15 minutes of fame to play host.

And it's not just their impressive voices that sets them apart from girl group gone by. Fifth Harmony's girlish spark is a refreshing alternative to the current state of female pop star affairs. The last American girl group to gain fame was made up of one hyper-sexualized singer (who also recorded all the background vocals) surrounded by an actual horde of strippers. And as if that wasn't demeaning enough, the Pussycat Dolls inspired copy cats, the Dolls themselves the obviously unoriginal knock-off of the sleazy Vegas burlesque show by the same name, setting up a debased template for how girl groups should be.

In their X-Factor live shows, Fifth Harmony has chosen to perform songs about first love, heartbreak, friendship and... well, girl power. Twice they belted out songs originally performed by X-Factor judge Demi Lovato. In both instances, Lovato confessed the five singers did a better job, as if the songs were written specifically for them. Which makes sense seeing how Disney-fit Fifth Harmony is.

In that sense, Fifth Harmony is modeled more similar to the British girl group tradition, responsible for initiating the girl power wave with the Spice Girls. Unlike Aubrey O'Day and friends, you never saw the members of The Sugarbabes, Girls Aloud or All Saints use a stripper pole in their dance routines. (5h really are the new Girls Aloud!!!!!) More recently, X-Factor UK contestants Little Mix joined this sorority for the squeaky clean but quirky.

In a time when teen girls get promised national attention for getting pregnant rather than for following their dreams, and sex tapes seem to be the fast track to fame, the voices of Fifth Harmony deserve to be loud. We can only hope that, even if they go home next week, they will continue to make music. If only because I want my sisters to grow up knowing that it's not impossible for five talented 16-year-old girls to take over the world, big bows and all.



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Khloé Kardashian Dieted for X Factor Debut

via glooce

 

How did Khloé Kardashian prepare for her big debut this week as co-host of The X Factor?

One word. Diet.

"I tried to cut out a lot of sweets," Kardashian, 28, told reporters after Thursday's show. "And I love ... cheese. [Cheese] is not a sweet, but …. I don't care."

An admitted cheese-o-holic, she likes "cheese on anything, I don't care. … [I] binge eat," she says, then, with a laugh, adds, "and cry."

Kardashian does take shaping up seriously: "It's always going to be a lifelong thing for me. And I'm not where I want to be."

Still, she's gained some perspective. "When I used to do things like crash diets or things too fast, it never stuck because it wasn't a lifestyle change," she says. "So for this, I'm working out consistently like three to five days a week … It's been harder. But I'm just changing my diet slowly."

As for how she looked on the show, Simon Cowell went so far as to say on-air that her nipples were showing. How did Khloé feel about that?

"I didn't mind that he talked about it," she says. "because it was there! Like, if you didn't talk about it, it would have been weird."

Her wardrobe limitations could be blamed on Hurricane Sandy. "My stuff got stuck on the East Coast, so the top I wanted to wear came in that day. I was like, 'Oh, perfect' – and we didn't have time to do it full dress rehearsal."

The actual top "was lined with a nude lining," and "we double taped it," but "the first time I ever went onstage was when it was live! So Simon was looking at me and going like this [gestures pointing to her nipples], and I was ... covering it with my hair, and I thought, from my angle, maybe it was just ... nippily."


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X Factor Uk's Judge Tulisa covers Cosmopolitan Uk nov 2012

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Britney Spears gets good reviews for her X Factor Usa judging position

Via Glooce

Entertainment Weekly: 'X Factor': Britney brings the joy and the pain



The X Factor could hardly have done better in enlisting Britney Spears as a new arbiter of who can cram the most notes into a musical phrase. Spears embodies as much of that indefinable quality that lifts a singer into super-duper-stardom, plus… well, she’s Britney, which means she brings to any professional endeavor that mixture of sweetness, shrewdness, nervous energy, unpretentiousness, and, occasionally, defiance that only finds its full flower when she’s trying most earnestly to be a surrogate for the masses. Which is what she managed to do on her X Factor debut, even while she was being treated like pop royalty. 


It built to her. She did just fine, rattling off a variety of “No”s to the punching-bag mediocrities the producers let in for comic relief, and offering sensibly measured praise and a few out-and-out raves the rest of the time. In other words, she didn’t overdo it, she looked comfortable, and I’m including the moment when she was confronted with an old duet partner, Don Philip, whose voice was shot.

rest of review here http://watching-tv.ew.com/2012/09/12/x-factor-britney-spears/



People magazine: Spears has a lot of Charm on the X Factor



It's good to have Britney Spears back. She's a star, whatever her ups and downs, and the originator of some of the most iconic pop images of the past 20 years. Yes, it's always good to know Britney is in the house. Or simply a house.

Or even The X Factor. 

Spears still has a lot of charm in her expressive mouth – she has a great mouth, actually – and eyes that easily convey whatever emotion the moment requires. She has simple, undeniable physicality.

rest of review here http://www.people.com/people/article/0,,20629628,00.html




NY Post: Major ‘Factors’



But the pop diva was at the top of her game last night — and for 15 million big ones, she had better be. Looking a bit banged up, but sounding smart and decisive, Spears easily slipped into the Paula role without making viewers resent that she had snatched the seat

Rest of review here: http://www.nypost.com/p/entertainment/tv/wild_change_VyAlbi2cquknI2dajHQH7O#ixzz26Mm6NkRg




Entertainment Weekly 'The X Factor' recap: Britney Spears Gives Good Face




Now that I've been sing-humming "Toxic" for five hours, it's probably safe to start the recap.

Welcome, bitches, to Britney's new castle! Demi Lovato also lives there now, along with her father/brother figure and sex/romance consultant Simon Cowell. 

What I like about Britney on this show, besides everything, is her succinctness. She's brutally honest, never rambles, and -- if we're to believe the carefully edited clip series of some of her best letdowns -- often just says "No." one, two, or three times to get her point across.

http://tvrecaps.ew.com/recap/the-x-factor-season-2-premiere-britney-demi/




MTV: Britney Brings It



Britney brings it: Spears was full of bubbly compliments ("flawless," "amazing," "I think you are completely and utterly adorable") and harsh putdowns ("you need a new teacher," "I felt like I was listening to Alvin and the Chipmunks," "I really didn't get it," "no, no, no, no.") She also wasn't afraid to mix it up with rude, terrible singers and provide a gallery of classic horrified/elated faces. But the pained, confused look on her face and her real talk assessment of former duet partner Don Philip's audition provided one of the realest moments on "Factor," or any competing show, in recent memory. "Your voice really isn't up to the bar of the standards of the 'X Factor' and what we want," she told him.

Rest of review:
http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1693752/demi-lovato-britney-spears-x-factor-premiere.jhtml



Billboard: Britney Offers Breathless Critiques Throughout Premiere




Britney Spears got down to business in her "X Factor" debut Wednesday night, dispensing blunt-but-fair rulings on some singers, cheery encouragement to others and even weathering a sad encounter with an old duet partner who was clearly past his prime.

Throughout the two-hour premiere on Fox, Spears cast off her vacant-eyed reputation and showed herself to be a pro at delivering the kind of deliberate, tough-to-swallow feedback that often goes unsaid during these kinds of reality competitions. During an early montage of her best zingers, Spears and the word "no" became pals, and she was blunt with oddities like 50-year-old Shawn Armenta, after he sang his own composition "Candy Girls."

rest of review here http://www.billboard.com/column/reality-check/britney-spears-crushes-old-duet-partner-1007948552.story#/column/reality-check/britney-spears-crushes-old-duet-partner-1007948552.story


The Star: The X Factor premiere recap: Britney Spears, Demi Lovato make impressive debut 



Well played, Simon Cowell, well played.

Of course, one of the reasons Cowell is a gazillionaire is his ability to spot talent, whether in the music business or on TV shows.

The X Factor mastermind saw something in Britney Spears the rest of us were missing.

Granted we’re only into the first audition show, but I was buying what Spears was selling. And that was a direct, unsentimental approach to judging.

Paula and Nicole who?

rest of review here http://www.thestar.com/entertainment/television/article/1255959--the-x-factor-premiere-recap-britney-spears-demi-lovato-make-impressive-debut




IVillage: She may not have nice things to say about everybody, but the Queen of Pop was an honest -- and entertaining -- judge!




"You're very good at this," Simon Cowell told Britney Spears at one point during the premiere of The X Factor (Fox, Wednesday and Thursdays, 8 p.m. ET). And he was right. 

The much hyped premiere -- typical for a Cowell affair -- placed a lot of focus on Spears, the most iconic (and expensive) member of his new judging panel. The first episode showcased a carefully calculated revamp, including a documentary-style feel in the segments prior to the auditions. But the addition of Spears (and to a slightly lesser extent, the bubbly Demi Lovato) was Cowell's ace in the hole.

When the four judges -- Cowell, L.A. Reid, Spears and Lovato -- took the stage, Spears was introduced last. And the camera's careful attention to her made it clear: Lovato is a fun, feisty spitfire, but Spears' opinions are the most valued. And happily, the 30-year-old pop icon rose to the challenge.


Read More http://www.ivillage.com/x-factor-premieres-how-did-britney-spears-do-judge/1-a-486978#ixzz26N9qKOwQ




Washington Times: Britney Spears: Singer rules as 'X Factor' judge 



Judge Britney Spears is in control on “The X Factor.”

During the season debut airing Wednesday on Fox, the audience cheers her; Simon Cowell defers to her; and Miss Spears is crisp, if not a wit, in her contestant verdicts.

We get the pop princess who knows how to hold the spotlight, not the young woman who has struggled in her personal life, in the taped premiere of “X Factor.” Live episodes start airing in November.

Jitters may be making her matter-of-fact, and even stern, but she appears unlikely to morph into a Paula Abdul-style pushover even if she gets more comfortable. Her “X Factor” style: sleek, form-fitting dresses and an impressive array of frowns and surprised smiles.

Rest of review: http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2012/sep/12/britney-spears-singer-judge-rules-x-factor/?page=1#ixzz26OWpFJub

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