Kirstin Maldonado & Her Pentatonix Group Mates to Guest Star in “The Simpsons” Holiday Special

Kirstin Maldonado is getting animated…

The 32-year-old half-Mexican, part-Spanish American singer and her Pentatonix group mates will appear as animated versions of themselves in the upcoming The Simpsons holiday special.

Kirstin Maldonado, PentatonixIn addition Maldonado and her group makes, the episode titled “O C’mon All Ye Faithful,” will also feature another experienced Christmas caroler: Patti LaBelle.

The a cappella group and “On My Own” singer will deliver musical performances in the double episode premiering December 17 on Disney+, exactly 35 years after the original Simpsons holiday special aired in 1989.

The streaming platform also shared a trailer for the project, showing Homer wreaking havoc on Springfield after famed mentalist Derren Brown hypnotizes him into thinking he’s Santa Claus.

“Celebrate the holidays with a double-episode holiday special,” the teaser reads in between shots of the Simpsons patriarch riding on a parade float with a white beard, getting tased by police on the street and crashing his homemade sleigh into Moe’s Tavern.

The trailer doesn’t show Pentatonix — which is comprised of Scott Hoying, Mitch Grassi, Maldonado, Matt Sallee and Kevin Olusola — or LaBelle, nor has Disney+ revealed details about their performances.

Pentatonix is known for their Christmas music, with the vocal group’s A Pentatonix Christmas spending two weeks atop the Billboard 200 in 2016.

Pentatonix has also dropped two new holiday singles in 2024: “Meet Me Next Christmas,” which arrived in November, and “Christmastime Is Finally Here” with A Great Big World, released Dec. 6.

 

Christina Aguilera & A Great Big World Release Official “Fall On Me” Music Video

Christina Aguilerais bracing for a fall

The 39-year-old half-Ecuadorian American singer and pop duo A Great Big World have released the official music video for their latest collaboration, “Fall On Me,” which features Xtina as the Queen of Spring. 

Christina Aguilera & A Great Big World

The video begins with A Great Big World(Ian Axeland Chad King) entering a winter wonderland where a piano sits next to a tree as snow falls. Flowers begin to bloom, and once Aguilera’s verse hits, suddenly the setting becomes draped in blossoms as spring sets in.

The tree at the video’s centerpiece is a metaphor for the continuous cycle of life, as director Se Ohwanted to convey the journey of love through the life cycle of a tree — a beautiful depiction of the search for connection and love in the song. 

“Moving through the seasons with this tree captures the interconnectedness of all things and how in time everything finds its balance and order,” A Great Big World added in an Instagram post with a clip of the visual.

A Great Big World also shared a heartfelt note to Aguilera in their post, writing, “@xtina, thanks for creating magic with us again. Truly one of the highlights of our lives.”

Aguilera and A Great Big World first debuted “Fall On Me” with a breathtaking performance at the 2019 American Music Awardsin November. 

It’s the trio’s second team-up since their Grammy-winning 2013 hit “Say Something.”

Cardi B Wins Favorite Artist – Rap/Hip-Hop at the American Music Awards for the Second Straight Year

Make that two in a row for Cardi B

The 27-year-old half-Dominican American rap sensation picked up her second straight Favorite Artist – Rap/Hip-Hop trophy at this year’s American Music Awards, which aired live on ABC on Sunday night.

Cardi B

Cardi B won the crown over Drake and Post Malonefor the title, the same artist’s she beat out for the prize last year.

Camilla Cabello has also picked up her second straight trophy in the Collaboration of the Yearcategory.

The 22-year-old Mexican and Cuban singer and former Fifth Harmony member, who now has five solo AMAs trophies and a sixth with5H, won alongside Shawn Mendes for their chart-topping singleSeñorita.” Last year, Cabello won for her chart-topping hit “Havana,” featuring Young Thug.

Bruno Mars picked up the Favorite Male Artist – Soul/R&B trophy, the second win in the category for the 34-year-old part-Puerto Rican singer.

Mars beat out Chris Brownand Khalid for the award.

The third time proved to be the charm for J Balvin…

The 34-year-old  Colombian reggaeton singer won the Favorite Artist – Latintrophy for the first time, after losing out for the award the previous two years.

J Balvin beat out Bad Bunny andOzuna for the prize.

Hosted by Ciara, the evening included performances by Taylor SwiftBillie EilishSelena GomezLizzoChristina Aguilera & A Great Big WorldKeshaBig FreediaPost MaloneOzzy OsbourneHalseyCamila Cabello and Shawn Mendes

Here’s the full list of winners:

Artist of the Decade
Taylor Swift

Artist of the Year
Taylor Swift

New Artist of the Year
Billie Eilish

Collaboration of the Year
Shawn Mendes & Camila Cabello “Señorita”

Tour of the Year
BTS

Favorite Music Video
Taylor Swift “You Need to Calm Down”

Favorite Social Artist
BTS

Favorite Male Artist – Pop/Rock
Khalid

Favorite Female Artist – Pop/Rock
Taylor Swift

Favorite Duo or Group – Pop/Rock
BTS

Favorite Album – Pop/Rock
Taylor Swift “Lover”

Favorite Song – Pop/Rock
Halsey “Without Me”

Favorite Male Artist – Country
Kane Brown

Favorite Female Artist – Country
Carrie Underwood

Favorite Duo or Group – Country
Dan + Shay

Favorite Album – Country
Carrie Underwood “Cry Pretty”

Favorite Song – Country
Dan + Shay “Speechless”

Favorite Artist – Rap/Hip-Hop
Cardi B

Favorite Album – Rap/Hip-Hop
Post Malone “Hollywood’s Bleeding”

Favorite Song – Rap/Hip-Hop
Lil Nas X ft. Billy Ray Cyrus “Old Town Road”

Favorite Male Artist – Soul/R&B
Bruno Mars

Favorite Female Artist – Soul/R&B
Beyoncé

Favorite Album – Soul/R&B
Khalid “Free Spirit”

Favorite Song – Soul/R&B
Khalid “Talk”

Favorite Artist – Alternative Rock
Billie Eilish

Favorite Artist – Adult Contemporary
Taylor Swift

Favorite Artist – Latin
J Balvin

Favorite Artist – Contemporary Inspirational
Lauren Daigle

Favorite Artist – Electronic Dance Music (EDM)
Marshmello

Favorite Soundtrack
“Bohemian Rhapsody” by Queen

Christina Aguilera to Perform New Song “Fall on Me” at the American Music Awards

Christina Aguilera is ready to introduce new music to the world…

The half-Ecuadorian American singer is set to perform at the 2019 American Music Awards.

Christina Aguilera

Aguilera and A Great Big World, who first collaborated together in 2013, the same year they performed “Say Something” at the American Music Awards, will premiere a new vocal collaboration at this year’s awards show.   

The single is called “Fall on Me,” and will be released on Friday, just days before Aguilera and A Great Big World perform it live at the show.

Aguilera and A Great Big World join a roster of new additions to the performers list that includes Post Malone featuring Ozzy OsbourneTravis Scott and Watt and Green Day.

Malone, joined by Osbourne, Scott and Watt, will also perform their new single live on television.

Green Day, meanwhile, will celebrate 25 years since releasing their 1994 album, Dookie, with a performance of “Basket Case” and their latest hit, “Father of All…

The additions to the lineup join previously announced performers the Jonas BrothersCamila CabelloBillie EilishSelena GomezLizzoDua LipaKesha feat. Big FreediaShania Twain and Thomas Rhett, as well as Artist of the Decaderecipient Taylor Swift.

The 2019 American Music Awards, hosted by Ciara, will air live from the Microsoft Theaterin Los Angeles on November 24 at 8:00 pm ET on ABC. Voting is open until November 20.

Vote Here for the AMAs!

Corea Leads the Pack of Latino Winners at the 2015 Grammy Awards

Chick Corea has added new trophies to his extensive Grammy collection…

The 73-year-old part-Spanish jazz and fusion musician earned two awards at Sunday’s Grammy Awards, raising his total Grammy count to 22.

Chick Corea

Corea, who came into the night at the most-nominated Latino artist of the year, won in both of the categories in which he was nominated.

He picked up the award in the Improvised Jazz Solo category for “Fingerprints.” He won for Jazz Instrumental Album for the Chick Corea Trio’s critically acclaimed Trilogy.

But Corea wasn’t the only Latino/a to come away with a coveted gramophone.

Kirstie Maldonado picked up her first-ever Grammy.

The half-Mexican American/part-Spanish artist and her fellow Pentatonix group mates – winners of NBC’s The Sing-Off in 2011 – won in the Arrangement, Instrumental or A Cappella category for their acclaimed 
”Daft Punk” medley.

Christina Aguilera, the Best New Artist winner at the 42nd Annual Grammy Awards in 2000, picked up the fifth Grammy of her career. The 34-year-old half-Ecuadorian American singer won in the Best Pop Duo/Group Performance
for her collaboration with A Great Big World on the single “Say Something.”

Other winners include Arturo O’Farrill & The Afro Latin Jazz Orchestra, Ruben Blades, Calle 13, Vicente Fernandez and Carlos Vives.

Meanwhile, Flaco Jiménez was honored with a Lifetime Achievement Award.

The 73-year-old accordionist who brought Tex-Mex flavor to the music of Bob Dylan, the Rolling Stones, Ry Cooder and others gained mainstream popularity as a member of the crossover bands The Texas Tornados and Los Super Seven. He’s a five-time Grammy Award winner. Distinguished accordion manufacturer Hohnor created the Corona II Flaco Jimenez Signature Model in his honor. He’s the only Latin artist to receive the career Grammy tribute this year.

Here’s a complete look at all the night’s Latino winners:

Best Pop Duo/Group Performance
A Great Big World with Christina Aguilera, “Say Something”

Best Arrangement, Instrumental or A Cappella
Pentatonix – “Daft Punk”

Best Improved Jazz Solo
Chick Corea – “Fingerprints”

Best Jazz Instrumental Album
Chick Corea Trio – Trilogy

Best Latin Jazz Album
Arturo O’Farrill & The Afro Latin Jazz Orchestra – The Offense Of The Drum

Best Latin Pop Album
Ruben Blades, Tangos

Best Regional Mexican Music Album (Including Tejano)
Vicente Fernández, Mano A Mano – Tangos A La Manera De Vicente Fernández

Best Latin Rock, Urban or Alternative Album
Calle 13, Multiviral

Best Tropical Latin Album
Carlos Vives, Más + Corazón Profundo

 

Aguilera to Perform Alongside the Rockettes at the NBA All-Star Game

Christina Aguilera is Rocketting to the (all) stars…

The 34-year-old half-Ecuadorian American singer will kick off this year’s NBA All-Star Game with a special performance alongside the Rockettes.

Christina Aguilera

It’s all part of the Entertainment Series presented by JBL on Sunday, February 15.

Aguilera and popular dance troupe will team up for the opening, New York-inspired performance when the All-Star Game, which will air live at 8:00 pm ET on TNT, kicks off from Madison Square Garden in New York City.

The Rockettes are an iconic New York City entertainment staple; and Aguilera was born in Staten Island before becoming a Grammy-winning artist and coach on NBC’s The Voice.

Aguilera’s performance with the Rockettes will lead directly into the All-Star Game player introductions.

Aguilera is the second announced 2015 NBA All-Star performer, after Ariana Grande was revealed to be this year’s halftime performer last week.

Since the release of 2012’s Lotus, Aguilera has scored hits with collaborations, including “Feel This Moment” with Pitbull and “Say Something” with A Great Big World, while hinting at a new studio album.

Next month, Aguilera will return to The Voice for the show’s eighth season, after taking two seasons off from the reality singing competition.

Pitbull’s “Timber” Featured as Part of DJ Earworm’s “United State of Pop” 2014

One of Pitbull’s iconic hits of 2014 is being immortalized in a special way…

The 33-year-old Cuban American rap superstar’s collaboration with Ke$ha “Timber,which reached No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, is featured in DJ Earworm’s perennially dubbed the “United State of Pop,” a mash-up of the calendar year’s 25 biggest pop songs.

United State of Pop 2014

Annually, DJ Earworm takes the year’s massive hits and combines them into an incredibly popular, masterfully constructed mash-up.

Earworm, who has been analyzing the Billboard charts since he was a kid, has titled this year’s single-length mega-mix as “Do What You Wanna Do.”

“Personally, I’ve been obsessed with the Billboard charts since I was 11 or 12,” Earworm (real name: Jordan Roseman) tells Billboard about the tradition he started in 2007. “When I was a little boy, I used to tune in to Top 40 shows on the weekends, and I’ve always been fascinated by what makes popular tastes tick … It’s great to be able to come full-circle with Billboard.”

Over the past seven years, the California producer’s “United State of Pop” series has packaged the sounds of some of the world’s most popular musicians — including Rihanna, the Black Eyed Peas, Bruno Mars and many more — into kinetic dance singles that each earn millions of hits online; his breakout mash-up came in 2009, and that year’s video currently has 44 million YouTube views.

Although Earworm’s creations typically operate at high BPMs, the DJ tells Billboard that he has to respect the ebb and flow of popular music, which is why his 2014 mash-up is a bit more contemplative.

“The thing that has been most notable in the past two or three years is the decline of EDM,” says Earworm of the 25 songs he selected for this year’s song. “The ‘United State of Pop’ became this dance track from ’09 to ’12, and then starting last year, there just wasn’t enough in that genre to fully support it, so I went down-tempo. And this year, ‘Timber,’ which was popular in January, is the only popular dance track I’m dealing with. It’s definitely down-tempo, so you have to decide, how is this going to go? How am I going to maintain the energy levels while being true to the sound of the year?”

Earworm continues that 2014 was “dominated by these slow, ponderous songs like ‘Say Something’ and ‘All Of Me,’ and then swaggering hip-hop songs like ‘Turn Down For What,’ ‘Talk Dirty,’ and ‘Black Widow.’ Then you have totally uptempo songs like ‘Happy’ and ‘Shake It Off,’ too. It’s a little bit more diverse, and definitely softer than it’s been.”

Crafting a memorable mash-up out of R&B ballads like John Legend’s “All Of Me” and offbeat pop-rock tracks like Bastille’s “Pompeii” isn’t easy, and Earworm says that crafting the 2014 “United State of Pop” was a more challenging process than usual. He relied on the drums from Jessie J’s “Bang Bang,” the percussion of DJ Snake & Lil Jon’s “Turn Down For What,” the horns from Jason Derulo’s “Talk Dirty” and the piano hooks from A Great Big World’s “Say Something,” featuring Christina Aguilera, to help create an instrumental bed that was “much more complex” than in previous years.

“I would love the whole thing to be perfectly blended each time, but it also has to be digestible,” Earworm explains. “Some years, it’s a pretty straightforward instrumental from one source, but this year is the most blended instrumental I’ve been able to achieve yet.”

Here’s a look at the 25 songs featured in DJ Earworm’s mash-up:

A Great Big World feat. Christina Aguilera – Say Something
Ariana Grande feat. Iggy Azalea – Problem
Bastille – Pompeii
Dj Snake & Lil Jon – Turn Down For What
Hozier – Take Me to Church
Idina Menzel – Let It Go
Iggy Azalea feat. Charli XCX – Fancy
Iggy Azalea feat. Rita Ora – Black Widow
Jason Derulo feat. 2 Chainz – Talk Dirty
Jeremih feat. YG – Don’t Tell ‘Em
Jessie J feat. Ariana Grande & Nicki Minaj – Bang Bang
John Legend – All Of Me
Katy Perry feat. Juicy J – Dark Horse
Lorde – Team
Magic! – Rude
Maroon 5 – Animals
Meghan Trainor – All About That Bass
Nico & Vinz – Am I Wrong
One Direction – Story of My Life
Passenger – Let Her Go
Pharrell Williams – Happy
Pitbull feat. Ke$ha – Timber
Sam Smith – Stay with Me
Taylor Swift – Shake It Off
Tove Lo – Habits

Lovato to Perform for Logo TV’s “Trailblazers” Special

Demi Lovato is preparing for a trailblazing performance for gay rights…

The 21-year-old part-Mexican American singer/actress is set to perform for Trailblazers, a Logo TV special set to tape Monday, June 23 in New York City and air Thursday June 26 at 9:00 pm EST/PT to commemorate the one-year anniversary of when the Defense of Marriage Act was overruled.

Demi Lovato

Lovato will join a list of confirmed performers that includes Sia and A Great Big World, Michael Stipe, Macklemore & Ryan Lewis and Pete Wentz.

No word on what song Lovato will perform on the Logo TV special.

The “Trailblazers” event will honor activist Edie Windsor, DOMA litigator Roberta Kaplan, NBA star Jason Collins and Netflix hit series Orange Is The New Black (including stars Laverne Cox and Lea DaLaria) for their efforts in advancing the LGBT community.

Former R.E.M. singer Stipe will also appear to honor Ugandan gay rights activist and refugee John “Long Jones” Abdallah Wambere as an “International Trailblazer” for his work with Spectrum Uganda Initiatives, which advocates for LGBT rights and provides health and education services

Additional stars set to present or make special apperances include Daniel Radcliffe, Jared Leto, Kylie Minogue, Ariana Grande, Rita Ora, Tegan & Sara and Against Me! frontwoman Laura Jane Grace.

Aguilera to Perform “Say Something” at the American Music Awards

She may mentor aspiring singers on The Voice… But Christina Aguilera will soon be rockin’ the stage.

The 32-year-old half-Ecuadorian American singer and coach on NBC’s hit reality singing competition has been added to the growing list of performers at this year’s American Music Awards.

Christina Aguilera

Aguilera will perform the power ballad “Say Something” with New York duo A Great Big World.

Aguilera and A Great Big World, as well as new addition Ariana Grande,  will join previously announced performers Rihanna, Justin Timberlake, Luke Bryan, Miley Cyrus, Florida Georgia Line, Lady Gaga, Ke$ha, Imagine Dragons, Kendrick Lamar, Macklemore & Ryan Lewis, One Direction, Jennifer Lopez, TLC (with a special guest), Katy Perry and Pitbull, who will also serve as the award show’s host.

The AMAs will be broadcast live from the Nokia Theatre in L.A. on Sunday, November 24, from 8:00 – 11:00 pm ET on ABC.

Winners are determined by fan votes at AMAvote.com. Fans also can vote on Twitter for the first time this year.

The American Music Awards is produced by Dick Clark Productions.