WONGIE SONG OF THE WEEK: emeli sande - hurts

emeli sande - hurts
the urgent message of vulnerability that emeli proclaims for her return single is just wonderfully epic. if this is a hint of what's to come from the new album 'long live the angels' then i am all in! welcome back ms sande!

VIDEO PREMIERE: david guetta feat emeli sande - what i did for love

david guetta feat emeli sande - what i did for love
from the very first time i heard this epic soulful house song, it just felt primed for worldwide success! with emeli's vulnerable vocals mixed in with the uplifting piano chords, this song is just massive!!

LIVE PERFORMANCES: taylor swift O2 guests - ed sheeran, danny o'donoghue, sam smith, emeli sande & ellie goulding

good ol taylor swift has really been bringing on some fun guest stars for her 5 night run at the o2 arena in the london. though it's basically pop star karaoke, it still is fun to watch taylor practically do the same thing every night but with a different person (the lovely intro, the one hand in the air boogie, the breakdown leading to the stadium singalong/wave along) throw in the fact that the guests look like they're having fun and we've got 25 minutes of your life that you'll be smiling along to!


taylor swift and ed sheeran - lego house


taylor swift and danny o'donoghue - breakeven


taylor swift and sam smith - money on my mind


taylor swift and emeli sande - next to me


taylor swift and ellie goulding - burn

COOL MIX: robert glasper feat emeli sande - somebody else

robert glasper feat emeli sande - somebody else
jazz pianist robert glasper recently offered up a surprise of an album featuring a slew of collaborations including jill scott and norah jones, all singing over robert's special musical sauce. but one of the highlights definitely comes in the form of this number featuring emeli sande. though it's mellow in nature, the song showcases emeli's ability to take on characters through her lyrical vocals. pretty neat.

here's an additional bit of cool, robert describes how he met emeli and how she ended up recording this slick track for his new album:

WONGIE SONG/VIDEO OF THE WEEK: rudimental feat emeli sande - free

rudimental feat emeli sande - free
oh boy, this ticks so many boxes in the things that i love. firstly the beautiful song with the soulful emeli on inspiring vocals. then the video by stu thomson is at once a heartwarming story and also a visual feast in sports videography (extreme sports athlete jokke sommer is cray!) just wonderful stuff here!

VIDEO PREMIERE!: emeli sande - my kind of love (redone and alex p remix)

emeli sande - my kind of love (redone and alex p remix)
repackaged for a US release, this classic ballad from emeli's debut album has been beefed up with poppier undertones. after seeing her perform live last week, i'm convinced the US invasion will only get bigger for her.

NEW MUSIC FRIDAY: naughty boy feat wiz khalifa and ella eyre - think about it / naughty boy feat emeli sande - lifted (kat krazy remix)

naughty boy feat wiz khalifa and ella eyre - think about it
in anticipation of naughty boy's debut album 'hotel cabana', we get a bit of a hip hop jam featuring wiz and the smokey vocals of ella eyre (rudimental) as a teaser. with bastille, gabrielle and ed sheeran also in the mix, i simply can't wait to check out the full album next week!!

want more? check out this heavily danced up version of naughty boy's current single 'lifted'. though it's kind of stadium ready cheese, i kind of really dig it!
naughty boy feat emeli sande - lifted (kat krazy remix)

VIDEO PREMIERE: naughty boy feat emeli sande - lifted

naughty boy feat emeli sande - lifted
our indie soul song of the week gets an official video once again bringing a cinematic backdrop to the music of shahid khan (aka naughty boy). love this!

WONGIE INDIE SOUL SONG OF THE WEEK: naughty boy feat emeli sande - lifted

naughty boy feat emeli sande - lifted
the naughty boy debut album is sounding better and better with each wonderful release! after his #1 smash "la la la", this epic third single with muse emeli sande, looks set to do some repeat damage in the charts. brilliant!

WONGIE REMIX OF THE WEEK: kendrick lamar feat emeli sande - b*tch don't kill my vibe

kendrick lamar feat emeli sande - b*tch don't kill my vibe
oh yeah, emeli returns a favor after kendrick added some verses to her 'next to me' single, now she offers her vocal take on the anthemic song and it's fabulous!

WONGIE SONG OF THE WEEK: emeli sande feat rick smith - here it comes (TRANCE soundtrack)

emeli sande feat rick smith - here it comes (TRANCE soundtrack)
working with longtime danny boyle collaborator rick smith (underworld), our gal emeli reunites with her olympics benefactor (2 high profile performances seen by millions around the world) and offers up this beautiful haunting theme song for danny's latest mind F of a movie. i've been playing it on repeat and so should you!

LIVE PERFORMANCE: emeli sande - clown (live at the royal albert hall)

emeli sande - clown (live at the royal albert hall)
yeah, no need for words. this is just amazing.

WONGIE FM: Best of 2012 #1-10

 Best of 2012: #1-10

1. Disclosure feat Sam Smith – Latch
Slinky and sexy and smoldering in the best of ways! This was the song that made evenings exciting and perfectly soulful. Throw in the fact that these UK dj producers are just so smart with the musical twists throughout the track and you have, in my book, the best thing of 2012!

2. Fun. – We Are Young feat Janelle Monae / Some Nights / Carry On
I honestly thought these guys were a one hit phenom, but then anthemic song after anthemic song came out of their debut album and well... it was too wonderful to ignore. Easily the best songwriters of 2012 and the strongest debut of last year too.

3. Usher – Climax
I just wanna make things clear, I'm not a fan of most of Usher's songs, but THIS diplo produced slow burn just crept in and just lingered. It was probably too subtle for fans of cheesy r&b, which is why it didn't do so well, but damn I blasted this over and over and over again throughout the year.

4. Rita Ora – R.I.P. / How We Do
Easily the best pop gal of 2012, Rita Ora brought her London streetwise sense to her music, offering songs that leaned just a little to cool-town but not too much to alienate soul pop fans. Throw in the fact that she is damn gorgeous (that smile!) and you have one of THE debuts of the year. Now lets party and bullshit!

5. Jessie Ware – 110% (If You’re Never Gonna Move) / Wildest Moments
There was an easy reason why Jessie Ware's beautiful soulful voice and dynamic debut got her a nominee slot in the prestigious Mercury Prize, her mere presence on the music scene offered a voice that was at once exciting and fresh, but also mature and heartfelt. Speaking of the latter, "Wildest Moments" was born to be THE love theme for a soundtrack! Someone make it happen already!

6. Rudimental feat John Newman – Feel The Love
2012 offered up the return of drum n bass (or whatever the new term is called these days) and no other track celebrated that return than with this #1 smash by Rudimental. What made the song even more amazing is the subtle intro of jazz influences that eventually overtakes the song by the end (it's 2 songs in one yo!) Just brilliant!

7. The Lumineers – Hey Ho / Stubborn Love
Taking the reins of the collective roots musicana movement, the Lumineers specialize in singalongs that you don't feel stupid wailing along to. I discovered them on a TV show (which shall be nameless since it would kill any street cred I have ;) but, they soon, like for many people, became part of my soundtrack of 2012. Making rustic cool for the masses, I sure love these guys.

8. Stars – Hold On When You Get Love and Let Go When You Give It
Thanks to Stars, THIS was my mantra of 2012. Whether this is because I've hit that age that every song offers up a reason to contemplate my life or the fact that I love songs that remind me of the 80's, you can't NOT get a chill when you hear the lyrics, "Take the weakest thing in you and then beat the bastards with it. And always hold on when you get love so you can let go when you give it." Brilliant. 

9. Emeli Sande – Next To Me / My Kind of Love / Naughty Boy feat Emeli Sande - Wonder
My favorite artist of 2012 was also one of my favorite acts of 2011, so Emeli Sande has done a solid job of keeping my love for 2 years running (no wonder her debut is the biggest selling album in the UK for 2012!) With song after song telling stories that I completely relate to, Emeli is a powerhouse that will only get bigger in the years to come. Love.

10. Alex Clare – Too Close
Who'd have thought that Internet Explorer would actually help someone? Reviving interest in a song that was considered dead back in 2011, "Too Close" quickly got picked up again by radio stations and ended up one of biggest songs of 2012 (one that had a dubstep bass during the chorus, how's that for crossover!) But the true reason for it's success is Alex's soulful growl that just rips through the breakup song. Powerful and exciting, this song has no place BUT in the top 10 for 2012!

want to hear the rest of the chart? check them out with each click below:
#1-10
#11-20
#21-30
#31-40
#41-50
#51-60
#61-70

WONGIE BALLAD OF THE WEEK: emeli sande - clown

emeli sande - clown
the 5th (!!) single off emeli's amazing 'our version of events' album! this time telling the story of what she went through to get signed to a record label. not quite the holiday #1, but it's definitely yet another strong example of her wonderful talents as a songwriter.

NEW LABRINTH!: labrinth feat emeli sande - beneath your beautiful

labrinth feat emeli sande - beneath your beautiful
performed live last weekend on the x-factor uk, this song (co penned by emeli, labrinth and mike posner) is one of those power duet ballads that really deserves to be at the closing credits of a soundtrack. i love how emeli has emerged as one of UK's biggest stars at the moment (plus she looks amazing these days too).

COOL SONG CATCH UP: naughty boy feat emeli sande - wonder

naughty boy feat emeli sande - wonder
our previous song of the month gets a proper video which leads to me properly introducing it to my 10 readers. all is good in the music blogging equilibrium.

WONGIE SONG OF THE MONTH: naughty boy feat emeli sande - wonder

naughty boy feat emeli sande - wonder
released as a joint single to not only relaunch emeli sande's #1 selling 'our version of events' but also introduce producer/rapper naughty boy's debut album 'hotel cabana' to the masses. this rousing inspired song has all the epic elements of emeli's songwriting skills and naughty boy's infectious grooves. it's a marriage made in heaven and i just simply cannot get enough of this song!

WONGIE SONG OF THE WEEK: emeli sande - read all about it (acoustic)

emeli sande - read all about it (acoustic)
though the US audiences missed out on emeli's 2012 olympics opening ceremony performance, all was quickly forgotten with her haunting rendition of 'read all about it' that NBC allowed on the air to kick off the closing ceremony. the song, is actually an extended vocal version of her #1 hook on rapper professor green's smash hit of the same name. THIS version is uber lovely and deserves the buzz that's bringing her debut album 'our version of events' back to the top of the UK albums heap. love!

WONGIE SOUL SONG OF THE WEEK: emeli sande - my kind of love

emeli sande - my kind of love
[get ready for some simple yet powerful imagery for emeli's latest video. the song itself is rousing and continues to showcase how wonderful her debut album is (which you really should have in your collection by now)]
 

WE HEART EMELI SANDE!: emeli sande - next to me (live @ graham norton show) / next to me (mojam remix)

with her debut album 'our version of events' coming out next week, we continue our loving hype of emeli with a wonderful live performance on the graham norton show plus a classy hands up in the air house remix by mojam. all good. all cause we heart emeli sande!



emeli sande - next to me (live @ graham norton show)


emeli sande - next to me (mojam remix)