Tag Archive for Oprah

Performers may come and performers may go but great songwriters are forever. Don’t believe me? Name a single performer who is still remembered from Bach, Beethoven or Mozart’s heyday. See? I’m right.

Hundreds of years from now, I wager people will still be singing the music of superstar songwriter, Diane Warren, who has had more hits and accolades than practically any other songwriter in pop music history. You’d be hard-pressed to find a contemporary songwriter more influential or prolific.  

Diane Warren — Songwriter to the Stars

Diane has been nominated for GRAMMYs, Oscars and Golden Globes. Chances are, if you’ve heard a power ballad over the past three decades, it’s one of hers. She’s not simply a songwriter, she’s truly a phenomenon.

Continue reading ‘Fine Tunings: Diane Warren, Songwriter Extraordinaire’

Much like your favorite breakfast treat, pop music’s sugary charm is hard to resist; flakey on the outside, but oh-so-sweet on the inside. Every Saturday on the OurStage blog I will feature pop artists, songs, playlists, videos, and more that exemplify the feel-good confections of pop music.

Canadian singer-songwriter Alexandria Maillot is not your average teenager. At 17 she has won numerous talent and song-writing competitions, and even co-wrote a song picked up by Universal Music as the third single off of Swiss recording artist Stefanie Heinzmann’s chart topping album. Her songs are filled with catchy hooks and memorable melodies. Combined with her powerful, skilled, and soulful vocals it’s no secret that the girl’s got talent, and maturity beyond her years. Probably most significantly she has been featured on Oprah’s website as part of “Oprah’s Search for the World’s Smartest and Most Talented Kids” section. As we all know everything that Oprah touches turns to gold, so it’s not surprising that since then Maillot’s career has taken some pretty exciting turns.

She was recently selected as one of top 20 out of 450 artists to compete in the Peak Performance Project, a seven-year, $5.29 million contest open to all musicians in British Columbia. Maillot and the other finalists were required to participate in a one-week boot camp run by leading music industry professionals that covers the music business, live performance, songwriting, and marketing and promotion. There’s no doubt that this young star learned a lot through this experience, but probably most importantly she got the opportunity to meet and work with some of the best up-and-coming artists in British Columbia. During an interview with Raised on Indie she said that, “the most rewarding aspect of the project was meeting all of the bands and being involved in such a supportive music community.”

Continue reading ‘Poptarts: Alexandria Maillot’

• Lookin’ for an election day surprise? Four words: Palin Strips for McCain.

• For those not convinced by Snoop Dogg and Tom Cruise, some kids got together to guilt you into voting. C’mon dude. For the kids

• At the CMJ Music Marathon, we found out what indie musicians want from the next President.

• Oprah loses her vote, then gets it back. Whew!

• Fourteen-year-old Will Doolittle (coolest name ever?) writes a song about the election’s real winner (do I hear book deal?).